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Potential water saving through changes in European diets.
D Vanham1, A Y Hoekstra, G Bidoglio
1European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Via E. Fermi 2749, 21027 Ispra, VA, Italy.
Environment International
|October 8, 2013
Summary
Changing diets can significantly reduce the water footprint of consumption (WFcons) in the EU. Adopting a healthy or vegetarian diet offers substantial water savings across all EU zones, with vegetarian diets yielding the largest reductions.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Agricultural Science
- Sustainability Studies
Background:
- The water footprint of consumption (WFcons) is a critical indicator of environmental impact.
- Agricultural products constitute a major component of the EU's total WFcons, accounting for 89%.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the WFcons of agricultural products for different diets (current, healthy, vegetarian) across four EU zones.
- To assess the potential water savings achievable through dietary shifts.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of WFcons for three distinct dietary patterns.
- Zonal assessment of WFcons across WEST, NORTH, SOUTH, and EAST EU regions.
- Quantification of water savings based on proposed dietary changes.
Main Results:
- Current average WFcons for agricultural products varies significantly by EU zone (e.g., 5875 lcd in SOUTH vs. 3197 lcd in NORTH).
- A healthy diet could reduce WFcons by 3% to 30%, and a vegetarian diet by 27% to 41%, across zones.
- Vegetarian diets consistently demonstrated the most significant WFcons reductions.
Conclusions:
- Dietary choices have a substantial impact on the overall water footprint of consumption in the EU.
- Shifting towards healthier and particularly vegetarian diets presents a viable strategy for considerable water resource conservation.
- Implementing dietary changes offers a scalable solution for reducing the environmental burden of agricultural consumption across the EU.
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