Natural and social scarcity in water footprint: A multiregional input–output analysis for Italy

This study estimates the pressure exerted by Italian consumption on domestic and foreign water resources, adopting the Multiregional Input Output (MRIO) approach and using the information of the most recent (year 2014) World Input-Output Database (WIOD). Disaggregated results are obtained at country/industry level, identifying geographical and sectoral hotspots. The standard volumetric measure of the water footprint (WF) is compared with two impact-weighted measures. Scarce Water Footprint (SWF) corrects the volumetric measure accounting physical scarcity as expressed by a Water Scarcity Index (WSI), based on the ratio between withdrawals and supply of water at the national level. To account also for social factors affecting the availability of water, we propose a further measure of footprint, the Social-Scarce Water Footprint (SoSWF). We find that SWF represents 33.9% of volumetric WF, but the geographical breakdown reveals a relevant asymmetry between domestic and external water exploitation: while only 11.2% of WF generated impacts on domestic scarce water resources, SWF for imports amounted to 54.9% of the total water resources used to produce imported goods. About 45% of the Italian external SWF is generated in China and India by manufacturing, agriculture and electricity, gas and water supply. When also social scarcity is considered we find that the 43% of WF generated impacts on scarce water resources, and an even more evident asymmetry between domestic and external footprints (12.8% vs 71.1% of WF).