Water stewardship wants “identical degree of urgency” as local weather and biodiversity, says ISEP report

Water deserves the identical degree of focus globally as local weather change and biodiversity loss, in line with a brand new paper from the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals which urges organisations to maneuver past conventional environmental administration approaches and undertake extra holistic, catchment-based water stewardship practices.

By 2030, the well being and livelihoods of an estimated 4.8 billion folks could possibly be in danger if water high quality monitoring and administration don’t enhance.¹

The paper, “Past Compliance: Advancing Environmental Administration by means of Water Stewardship”, argues that whereas Environmental Administration Programs (EMS) similar to ISO14001 present a robust basis for managing environmental impacts, they’re not enough on their very own to handle escalating water-related dangers pushed by local weather change, air pollution, inhabitants development, and biodiversity loss.

ISEP Coverage and Engagement Lead, Lesley Wilson, stated: “Water can’t be handled by organisations as simply one other operational enter. It’s a shared, native useful resource important to ecosystems, communities, and financial resilience.

“It underpins meals manufacturing, vitality methods, well being, and industrial operations, but is commonly handled narrowly inside compliance-driven environmental packages. This paper emphasises that water-related dangers more and more intersect with local weather, biodiversity, ESG and regulatory agendas, demanding a extra worldwide and context-driven response.

“It exhibits how integrating water stewardship into environmental administration methods permits organizations to maneuver past compliance and play a significant function in safeguarding water at each web site and catchment ranges.”

Citing skilled consensus, the paper reinforces that water deserves the identical degree of urgency and assets as local weather change and biodiversity loss, significantly in water-scarce areas such because the Center East.²

Alicia Dauth, Water Assurance Technical Lead with the Water Safety Collective, and member of ISEP’s Environmental Administration Steering Group, stated: “Water shapes lives and our surroundings. It sits on the centre of sustainability. In arid environments such because the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it isn’t merely an enter, however somewhat the inspiration of sustainable improvement and wholesome ecosystems that help biodiversity and our future resilience.

“Expertise alone isn’t sufficient. Sturdy water stewardship practices are wanted greater than ever to speed up motion, take collective accountability and to optimise all water assets.”

Exploring how integrating water stewardship frameworks – significantly the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Normal – can considerably improve ISO 14001-based EMS, the paper demonstrates how complementary catchment-based, stakeholder-inclusive approaches can deal with shared water challenges past web site boundaries.

Constructing on ISO 14001’s Plan-Do-Verify-Act cycle, AWS’s 5 step framework – Collect and Perceive; Commit and Plan; Implement; Consider; Talk and Disclose – may also help organisations to realize sturdy, clear, and resilient water administration outcomes.

The paper additionally highlights how associated ISO requirements, together with ISO 14046 (Water Footprint), ISO 46001 (Water Effectivity Administration Programs) and ISO 59004 (Round Economic system), can additional strengthen built-in water methods when utilized in synergy.

The paper concludes that integrating water stewardship into environmental administration methods delivers tangible advantages, together with:

• Improved danger identification and resilience to water shortage, flooding, and air pollution
• Enhanced knowledge high quality and transparency for knowledgeable decision-making
• Stronger stakeholder engagement and collective motion at catchment degree
• Sustainable water use throughout websites, provide chains, and communities
• Lengthy-term worth creation for companies and the ecosystems they rely on

To entry the paper, go to: Past compliance: advancing environmental administration by means of water stewardship

Notes
[1] World enters period of ‘world water chapter’, United Nations, information launch. Hyperlink: https://information.un.org/en/story/2026/01/1166800
[2] The Future Water Agenda: How water can prepared the ground for sustainability and collective motion. Report, March 2025. Hyperlink: https://wwfint.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/the-future-water-agenda-by-globescan-wwf–final-.pdf