This report published by Ceres and the Pacific Institute in 2009, identifies water-related risks specific to eight key industries, the most critical being:electric power; high-tech; beverages and agriculture.
Water is crucial for the global economy - driving every industry from agriculture to electric power to silicon chip manufacturing. Beverage, apparel and tourism also rely on supplies of clean, potable water to survive and grow. Decreasing water availability, declining water quality, and growing water demand are creating immense challenges to businesses and investors who have historically taken clean, reliable and inexpensive water for granted.
These trends are causing decreases in companies' water allotments for manufacturing, shifts towards full-cost water pricing, more stringent water quality regulations and increased public scrutiny of corporate water practices.
The report concludes that climate change will exacerbate these growing water risks - especially as the world population grows by 50 million people every year. Already, China, India and the western U.S. are seeing growth limited by reduced water supplies from shrinking glaciers and melting snowcaps that sustain key rivers. Meanwhile, agricultural and power plant production have been cut back due to more frequent and more intense heat waves and droughts in large parts of Australia, California and the southeast U.S.
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