WATER EFFICIENCY & TRANSITION WATER EFFICIENCY
1.
AN INEVITABLE WATER TRANSITION
At the global level, climate change, degradation and overexploitation of water resources are leading to an increasingly frequent and significant mismatch between desired uses and available resources (in quantity and quality).
The negative and sometimes dramatic consequences on all human activities (drinking water, industry, agriculture, etc.) and on the functioning of natural environments are already present and will become even more pronounced in the future, with much more intense and frequent climatic hazards (droughts and floods). The use of water will be increasingly constrained and costly (direct and indirect costs).
This leads to a global water transition, just as there is an energy transition.
ALL HUMAN ACTIVITIES WILL HAVE TO ADAPT = NEED FOR A WATER TRANSITION STRATEGY
Transition refers to "a process of transformation in which a system moves from one equilibrium regime to another". Transition is therefore not a simple adjustment but a "fundamental reconfiguration of the functioning and organisation of the system". This structural transformation simultaneously affects the technological, economic, ecological, socio-cultural and institutional sectors and the developments in these sectors are mutually reinforcing. (...).
WATER IS A MAJOR NEW PERFORMANCE LEVER = INTEREST OF A WATER TRANSITION STRATEGY
2.
WATER: UNDER-ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACTS
The water transition is not only a reaction to a world that is becoming more stressed. It is also a way to improve the performance of economic actors.
The overall cost of water is in fact much higher than what is traditionally taken into account in economic assessments. In fact, to the direct costs that are easy to evaluate (water bills, fees, etc.) must be added the indirect costs, which are under-estimated, such as :
- Energy consumption and all actions associated with the operation of these facilities (e.g. working time, chemical reagents, etc.).
- Water use productivity (business continuity, asset efficiency).
- The number or size of facilities required for these water uses (e.g. pumps, aerators, filters, heat transfers, sanitation, etc.): CAPEX and OPEX.
- ...
Unresponsible water use can also have a cost on a collective scale, for other users of a resource.
2.
WATER: UNDER-ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACTS
The water transition is not only a reaction to a world that is becoming more stressed. It is also a way to improve the performance of economic actors.
The overall cost of water is in fact much higher than what is traditionally taken into account in economic assessments. In fact, to the direct costs that are easy to evaluate (water bills, fees, etc.) must be added the indirect costs, which are under-estimated, such as :
- Energy consumption and all actions associated with the operation of these facilities (e.g. working time, chemical reagents, etc.).
- Water use productivity (business continuity, asset efficiency).
- The number or size of facilities required for these water uses (e.g. pumps, aerators, filters, heat transfers, sanitation, etc.): CAPEX and OPEX.
- ...
Unresponsible water use can also have a cost on a collective scale, for other users of a resource.
WATER IS A MAJOR NEW PERFORMANCE LEVER = INTEREST OF A WATER TRANSITION STRATEGY
3.
WATER: A LOCAL ISSUE SHARED BY ALL
Water being a marker of humanity, those who waste and pollute it will be less and less tolerated. The negative impact of bad practices is not only felt outside (other users, customers, etc.) but also inside (employees, partners, etc.) the company or community.
Water is therefore also an excellent subject for triggering an environmental dynamic within a company or a community It is concrete, it is vital, it is local. This makes it easier to get the greatest number of people on board and can then be applied to other subjects (the methods are generally the same): waste, energy, transport, etc.
REDUCING THE WATER FOOTPRINT IS ALSO A SOCIETAL ISSUE, TO WHICH ALL PARTIES, INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL, ARE SENSITIVE
WATER EFFICIENCY
The current water management strategy is mainly based on water treatment: on the one hand the production of standardised water (drinking water, osmosis water, demineralised water, ice water, etc.) from raw water and on the other hand the collection and treatment of wastewater.
In a situation where water is becoming less available and more expensive, this strategy may be inappropriate because it simply meets the needs, without considering the relevance and efficiency of water uses. In other words, it acts on the consequences, with little regard for the causes.
The water efficiency strategy is a systemic approach, which aims to control, improve and if necessary transform all aspects of water management.
The first priority is to act on the root causes, i.e. water uses, to reduce consumption and discharges (volume and pollution load) and to produce or treat only what cannot be avoided. It is then a question of trying to reorganise flows (sorting, cascade of uses, reUT, etc.) and diversify resources (rainwater, etc.).
IT IS AN ECONOMIC INTELLIGENCE APPROACH THAT AIMS ON THE ONE HAND TO REDUCE RISKS AND DIRECT AND INDIRECT COSTS (ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE) AND ON THE OTHER HAND TO REDUCE THE WATER FOOTPRINT (ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE).
The basis of this strategy is therefore no longer water treatment, but information. The first technical objective is to know and monitor precisely the consumption and discharge of each water use. This can be done, during targeted campaigns or on a permanent basis, by installing quantitative and qualitative measurement points. This mapping makes it possible to identify and prioritise points for improvement and risks, and then to recommend organisational and/or technical solutions adapted to each situation.
WATER TRANSITION TERRITORY
The water transition strategy is a global approach (from the resource to the discharges) which aims at transforming the water system of a territory to improve its efficiency and to match the uses with the available resources (today and tomorrow).
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For example, it is a question of :
- gradually accompanying all the players towards a reduction in consumption ( = hunting down waste and leaks, sobriety, changes in use, etc.) but also in the quantity and quality of pollution emitted (= clean processes, sorting of effluents, substitution or exclusion of substances, etc.).
- diversify resources (rainwater, reUT, cascades of uses, etc.) addressing some of these uses
A water transition programme therefore requires the creation of a territorial dynamic on water-related issues.