Press release from Business Wire India
Source: The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)
Thursday, April 14, 2011 08:04 PM IST (02:34 PM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest, Economy, Food & drink, Social issues; Business: Business services, Energy companies, Water
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TERI and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) discuss the Significance of the 'India Water Tool' in addressing Water availability issues at the India Water Forum 2011
Water Use Efficiency in the Indian Corporate Sector
New Delhi, Delhi, India, Thursday, April 14, 2011 -- (Business Wire India) -- TERI Business Council for Sustainable Development (TERI-BCSD) India today at the India Water Forum 2011, a three day convention to address the dynamics of water and climate change, held a significant corporate dialogue on efficient water management needs in business planning with a focus on the 'India Water Tool'. More than 70 senior representatives from the corporate sector and other stakeholders came together at the session.
The presentation by TERI focused on major challenges that India Inc. would face with the rising water demand and declining per capita water availability. At length it discussed the need for Water Auditing and Accounting and its benefits through identification and prioritization of areas of water conservation and management.
Further, taking cognizance of the National Water Mission, TERI and its Business Council and WBCSD proposed to partner with Corporate India to develop a customized India Water Tool, led by select Champion Companies. The creation and use of an India Water Tool will support companies' operations in India through better understanding of water sensitivities and availability, as well as provide information on potential water risks.
The finale of the dialogue saw a high level Panel Discussion on the topic "Water Stewardship: Good for Business- Good for Society". The panel comprising of eminent business leaders from ACC Limited, Coca-Cola India, Jain Irrigation, Jaypee Cement, HCC and Wipro, shared success stories on how social and economic imperatives led to innovations in water management by the industry, resulting in financial gains. The panel further stressed on the need to internalize the issue of water as an integral part of core business development.
The Global Water Tool (GWT) is endorsed by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and has been adopted by over 300 companies globally. It can be accessed at www.wbcsd.org/web/watertool.ht. The tool is acknowledged as one of the best tools to assess corporate water-related risks at a global level. Its unique feature is showing a company its water use in comparison with local water availability, something many companies don't yet analyze. The creation and use of an India Water Tool will support companies' operations in India through better understanding of water sensitivities and availability, as well as provide information on potential water risks. Its development will also pave the way for potential watershed-level dialogues that could help promote collective action on shared water risks within different river basins in India.
Mr. Asim Parekh, Vice-President - Technical, Coca-Cola present at the deliberations said, 'as a business we cannot focus only on markets but also have a social obligation to think about the societies where our markets are. Water source assessment helps businesses to be efficient as it makes immense business sense to be able to make a quality finished product by using less water and in the process help the cause of sustainability'.
The discussions talked about water stewardship and the need to internalize it as an integral part of business development. This sentiment was echoed by Mr. Hariprasad Hegde, VP and Business Head, Wipro Water, when he said, 'we are operating in an environment of water shortage, which will soon reach a level of water scarcity. A paradigm shift is taking place and solutions like the Global Water Tool as well government policies can help solve this at the operational level. Water Audit is important as it not only helps in strategizing but demands achievable operational improvement'.
The agriculture sector in India uses maximum amount of water in India but as Mr. R. C. A. Jain, Independent Director, Jain Irrigation, 'pointed out drip irrigation is a solution but more than technology educating the marginal farmers who are in the front line has to be educated. Until and unless that initiative is undertaken we will continue to debate on the increasing demand of water in the agriculture sector'.
The forum also addressed the following objectives:
1. Enable corporates to demonstrate their leadership in water conservation efforts through audits which will reduce costs for water supplies, electric power for pumping and thereby increase the profit of industries.
2. Enhance knowledge of corporates and industries on benefits of water audit and their ability to use it as a tool for improving water use efficiency and conservation in their operations.
From an individual to a corporate house, water is used, misused and overused as well leaving many at the grassroots without an opportunity for a glass of fresh drinking water. There is a growing realization amongst Indian corporate for efficient water management and water audits can definitely help in identifying alternative methods of water conservation such as recycling and reuse of wastewater for various process and non-process uses, rain water harvesting & groundwater recharge and ensure energy saving and treatment costs.
In 2009 TERI-BCSD India along with its member companies brought out a White Paper on the Corporate Action Plan on Climate Change to define the new opportunities presented by India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC). In the second phase of this exercise TERI BCSD India's focus is now to successfully convert the white paper into sector-specific activities and programmes which would herald India Inc.'s commitment to address climate change.
About TERI-BCSD India
TERI-BCSD India, the Regional Network member of WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), at present, is a strong coalition of more than 100 member companies from diverse sectors, including PSUs (Public Sector Undertakings), multinational corporations and private companies from all across India. With the mission of providing an independent and credible platform for corporate leaders in India to address issues related to sustainable development, the Council carries out a variety of initiatives to implement sustainable practices on ground and cooperate with decision-makers in creating framework conditions for business to effectively contribute towards the goal of sustainable development.
WATER SITUATION IN INDIA & TERI
-- Projected water requirements for various sectors of Indian industries shows that the water requirement would get almost doubled from about 15.2 BCM in 1997 to 32.2 BCM in 2010 and is expected to increase seven folds to 102 BCM by 2050 (Indiastat.com, Central Water Commission 2008).
-- The amount of water used by the Indian industries for production is quite high (about 15 BCM) as compared to many countries such as Argentina (2.6 BCM), Brazil (9.9 BCM), Korean republic (2.6 BCM), Norway (1.4 BCM), Sweden (0.8 BCM) and UK (0.7 BCM).
-- The ratio of water consumption and economic value creation is around US $ 7.5, which is very low, compared to the above mentioned countries. Thus, the Government of India in its National Water Mission (NWM) under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC, 2008) has proposed to develop a framework for optimizing water use efficiency by 20 per cent through regulatory mechanisms with differential entitlements and pricing.
-- Given these challenges, the conscience for efficient water management needs to take a centre stage in business planning by the corporate. The contemporary approach of typical 'end-of-pipe' treatment of industrial wastewater needs to shift towards decentralized, process integrated water management. This where water audit come in use.
-- Water audit helps in development of an integrated industrial water management strategy, which optimizes efficient use of water, improves water productivity, reduces losses and helps in identifying alternative methods of water conservation such as recycling and reuse of wastewater for various process and non-process uses, rain water harvesting & groundwater recharge.
-- TERI with its experience in the water audit field provides support for building capacity of interested organizations, industries and Government officials. It has undertaken several studies on water auditing of various industries and has helped them identify losses in the system and opportunities for improving efficiency and water conservation including recycle, reuse, harvesting and recharge. Through its water audits in the city water supply system TERI has helped the local Municipal Corporations in identifying the UFW (Unaccounted for water) and provided them different short and long term strategies on the technical, institutional and financial management of water supply system.
CONTACT DETAILS
Rajiv Chhibber, Corporate Communication, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), +91 9810426698, rajivc@teri.res.in
Lalima Bose, Communication Strategy, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), +91 9810161449
KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, ECONOMY, FOOD, SOCIAL, BUSINESS SERVICES, ENERGY, WATER
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