Establishing water targets that are appropriate for your business and the environmental context - and are realistically achievable at the same time - can seem like a daunting task. This article can help you figure out where to start if you want to establish suitable yet ambitious water targets.
What Are Water Targets & Why They Matter
Water targets are specific, measurable commitments set by companies to manage water use, improve efficiency, reduce pollution, and support community water security. These targets can be set at the corporate, site, or supply chain level and should align with local watershed conditions to ensure they drive meaningful impact while staying aligned with broader sustainability goals.
Businesses are increasingly adopting water targets as part of their sustainability strategies because they provide tangible benefits, including:
Business continuity: Water risks are steadily becoming more pressing worldwide, making reducing exposure to water scarcity, floods, and pollution risks that can disrupt operations a priority.
Cost savings: Improving water efficiency lowers costs and wastewater treatment expenses.
Regulatory compliance: By proactively setting targets, companies can improve compliance with regulatory requirements, such as ESRS and CDP, and often anticipate requirements by exceeding them.
Shareholder Expectations: Investor representing US$130 trillion in assets requested companies to disclose water management data, including water targets (CDP, 2023) as demands for transparency and accountability increase.
Consumer Preferences: 38% of consumers say that eco-friendly packaging influences their purchasing decisions, and 34% want to see water conservation prioritized (PwC 2024)
Competitive advantage: €100 billion in business revenue is at risk due to water-related pressures and 209 companies report that basin challenges could threaten over 80% of their revenue (CDP 2023). Companies with strong water strategies are better positioned for long-term success in water-stressed regions
Types of Water Targets & Industry Applications
Companies may take different approaches to defining water targets based on what is relevant to their business and the environmental context. They can be quantitative or qualitative. They can focus on operational and value chain improvements (typically called “internal”) or can address shared community and catchment challenges (typically called “external”). Targets can also be established at a global, regional, and local facility level.
Water targets are commonly classified based on the extent to which they account for catchment conditions and scientific analysis:
Non-contextual water targets: Often aimed at improving internal efficiencies and water management practices. They are targets that are rather influenced by exercises such as benchmarking, a desire for incremental improvements, compliance or general corporate-level ambitions, without considering the specific water challenges, availability, and needs of the local watersheds in which the company operates.
Contextual water targets: Unlike non-contextual targets, these targets are established considering the unique environmental, social, and economic conditions where water activities occur. They are informed by the surrounding catchment context, focusing resources on relevant water-related challenges that benefit both the target-setting entity and other water users in the area. This approach ensures strategic alignment with local water needs and broader sustainability goals.
Science-based targets: This target is informed by rigorous scientific analysis and data: “in line with what the latest hydrological science says is necessary to meet the sustainable freshwater quantity and quality thresholds of the basin in which the city or company and its value chain operate,” (SBTN).
Most recently, science-based targets (SBTs) have created waves in corporate water management strategies— as of 2024, over 6,000 companies adopted SBTs. Launched in May 2023 by the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN), these targets involve a comprehensive impact assessment of the entire value chain, including direct operations and upstream supply chains. SBTs focus on both water quantity and quality, and their implementation and process involves a structured framework.
Common Examples
Water Use Efficiency
These focus on reducing water consumption per unit of production. According to CDP, 649 companies report having a water consumption target, 571 a water withdrawal target, and 223 a water intensity target. Many companies aim for world-class water efficiency ratios—for instance, breweries often target less than 2 liters of water per liter of beer. Tech companies, like Google, focus on Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE) in data centers, transitioning to non-potable or recycled water for cooling.
Water Replenishment & Restoration
Increasingly, companies commit to returning as much or more water than they withdraw, particularly in high-stress basins. Coca-Cola aims to return 2 trillion liters by 2030. Mining companies invest in groundwater recharge and wetland restoration to offset their intensive water use.
Water Quality & Pollution Reduction
Industries with high discharge volumes—such as manufacturing, food, and mining—set goals to reduce pollution and improve wastewater treatment. PepsiCo focuses on watershed health by addressing agricultural runoff, while mining companies set zero liquid discharge goals to prevent contamination.
WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) Commitments
Companies in food, beverage, and agriculture sectors often expand targets to ensure clean water access for workers and communities. Nestlé and Danone have long-term programs improving WASH conditions in supply chains.
Net Zero & Net Positive Water
Some leaders go beyond replenishment to restore more water than they consume. Amazon Web Services (AWS) aims for water positivity by 2030, balancing withdrawals with watershed investments. Colgate-Palmolive is targeting zero freshwater withdrawals at their facilities.
Key Sustainability Reports and Standards Addressing Targets
CDP Water Security – Requires companies to disclose water risks, targets, and progress toward water stewardship.
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI 303) – Encourages companies to report water use, discharges, and basin-related impacts.
Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) – Highlights water as a key nature-related risk, pushing companies to assess and report dependencies on freshwater resources.
European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) – Requires detailed water disclosures under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), ensuring companies track and report water dependencies and impacts.
SEC’s Climate Disclosure Rule Initially included water risk and target disclosure requirements, enforcement remains uncertain. In 2024, the SEC announced a pause in the implementation requiring companies to disclose their climate-related risks, pending the results of a legal challenge. Companies should indeed stay updated on developments while aligning disclosures with voluntary frameworks.
Establishing Water Targets with Technology
Gather & Consolidate Local Water Data
Collecting and centralizing water data is critical but often challenging due to fragmented sources and varying levels of accessibility. Companies must gather data on withdrawals, discharges, water quality, risks, and shared community challenges. Waterplan's technology simplifies this step by integrating multiple data sources, applying AI-driven analytics to identify inconsistencies, and streamlining the consolidation process of granular, site-specific local and global data.
Analyze Water Data & Prioritize High-Risk Sites
Once data is consolidated at facility, regional, and corporate levels, a comprehensive water risk assessment helps prioritize sites. Identifying high-risk locations requires analyzing water scarcity, regulatory constraints, and operational needs. Advanced analytics and machine learning tools provide real-time insights, allowing businesses to focus efforts where they are needed most. Scenario modeling tools including climate projections, ROI and resilience strategy offers actionable insights like recommended interventions and water stewardship solutions to maximize impact.
Establish Water Targets
Setting effective water targets requires alignment with both business objectives and local water conditions. This process involves defining clear goals at different organizational levels, ensuring internal alignment, and developing action plans. Digital platforms assist by structuring strategies, aligning them with industry standards like SBTN, and suggesting key initiatives for each site. Waterplan's AI agent and expert water advisory team connects multiple data sources (internal financial and operational data, surveys, climate models) to establish ambitious and achievable water targets and centralizing tracking, all in one platform.
Implement, Track Progress, & Adapt as Needed
Execution of water strategies requires continuous monitoring to track progress and address unforeseen challenges. One-off assessments and static reports with no continuous updates can result in static analyses that do not consider evolving circumstances. Smart meters, IoT sensors, and real-time data tracking enable facility managers to detect inefficiencies and optimize water usage dynamically. By leveraging these technologies, Waterplan helps companies adapt their strategies based on emerging insights and operational feedback, effortlessly scaling analysis across facilities and regions on one platform.
Disclose Progress Transparently
Regular and transparent reporting is crucial for accountability and compliance with frameworks like CDP, GRI, and CSRD. Setting water targets demonstrates compliance and reduces the risk of penalties while enhancing competitiveness. AI-driven reporting tools help automate data aggregation, reducing administrative burdens and ensuring accuracy in disclosures. Companies that integrate digital tools into their reporting workflows can more effectively demonstrate progress toward water targets while maintaining regulatory compliance.
How To Achieve Water Targets
While operational efficiencies are crucial, truly impactful water stewardship often requires thinking beyond the fence line. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly recognized as a powerful way to achieve ambitious water targets by leveraging the natural world. These solutions leverage natural systems—such as wetlands, forests, and soil conservation—to enhance water availability, improve quality, and mitigate risks associated with water scarcity and pollution.
Many companies find that achieving ambitious, science-based targets requires going beyond traditional efficiency measures. Nature-based solutions offer a powerful toolkit for addressing these challenges by leveraging the inherent capacity of ecosystems to enhance water security.
Leveraging NBS For Water Stewardship:
Achieving Replenishment Targets: Wetland restoration and reforestation projects help increase groundwater recharge, restoring natural water cycles.
Improving Water Quality Targets: Riparian buffers, agroforestry, and regenerative farming practices reduce nutrient runoff, improving water quality downstream.
Building Resilience for Flood and Drought Targets: Restored ecosystems provide natural flood management and enhance drought resilience, reducing operational risks for businesses.
Co-benefits for Climate & Biodiversity: Many NBS initiatives also contribute to carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation, strengthening overall sustainability commitments.
Leading companies are incorporating NBS into their water targets to ensure long-term resilience. The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has been actively collaborating with companies to align nature-based solutions with corporate water targets. By integrating NBS strategies such as watershed restoration, reforestation, and regenerative agriculture, businesses can not only replenish water resources but also enhance their overall water security strategies. These solutions support corporate goals by improving water availability, reducing risks, and contributing to long-term sustainability. To learn more, check out our webinar with The Nature Conservancy on Nature-based Solutions.
Similar initiatives worldwide are proving that investing in upstream conservation efforts can improve water security for both businesses and communities. NBS are not just about environmental good deeds; they are strategic tools for achieving specific, measurable water targets. However, to ensure their success, they must be integrated with broader organizational strategies. Here are a few of our suggestions:
Establish long- and short-term targets and plans: Break down long-term goals into yearly targets for easier action planning and progress tracking. Review and adjust plans based on progress towards short-term objectives.
Recognize this is a long-term initiative: Educate your organization, especially leadership, that water management initiatives, such as replenishment projects and efficiency improvements, require time to yield results.
Secure sustainable funding: Develop a sustainable funding strategy over the long term. Explore options such as budget allocations, investment in cost-saving measures, and seeking external funding or grants to support the implementation of projects.
Ensure accountability: Assign clear accountability at corporate, regional, and facility levels. Establish roles and responsibilities for monitoring progress, implementing initiatives, and driving continuous improvement.
Forge partnerships: Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders, including industry partners, local communities, NGOs, and government agencies, to leverage expertise, resources, and support for water management initiatives.
Takeaways
Establishing water targets is an effort that leverages internal data, external water risk data, benchmarks, stakeholder input, and expertise. Technology can simplify this process by efficiently gathering, consolidating, and assessing this diverse range of data. This can ultimately save you time, provide valuable insights, and inform decision-making. Moreover, you can collaborate with water experts and engage with colleagues who can provide additional expertise and support. By leveraging technology alongside expert knowledge, you can make informed decisions about establishing the right water targets for your organization.
