About the Water Risk Assessment

Our Water Risk Assessment was carried out in 2013 to highlight potential water-related risks faced by the tourism and hotel industry.

The assessment focuses on select countries and regions around the world where freshwater is becoming a scarce resource due to combination of factors including over-consumption, pollution, climate change and resource management.

The regions featured are: Dubai and the United Arab Emirates, Shanghai, Beijing, India’s Golden Triangle, and Rio de Janeiro.

For each region, the assessment provides an overview of emerging water risks, including:

  • Water quantity challenges
  • Complications related to water and climate change
  • Complications related to social aspects of water
  • Water legislation
  • Response measures

Who is it for?

The report is designed to heighten awareness and preparedness levels around water use in the hotel industry. It aims to support strategic thinking around freshwater including risk analyses for existing and proposed sites. It can also be used to assist in training staff and other members of the industry on smart water usage and other pre-emptive measures.

How was it created?

This study was carried out in 2013 by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) for the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (operating as International Tourism Partnership, ITP).

It was designed to provide indications of risks, impacts, and costs related to emerging water challenges, and to enable further analyses on these issues.

Recommended further reading

As a follow up to this report, we produced our Destination Water Risk Index to better understand water scarcity in key destinations around the world so the sector could work proactively to address this issue. This report also supported the development of our Water Stewardship Report which is a practical resource to help companies to better manage their water use and impacts through six steps.