CSRD, Reporting and Disclosure

From 2024, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will gradually mandate 6,000 publicly listed companies that operate within the European Union and meet certain turnover and size criteria to report on water performance indicators and metrics. 

For the first time, the CSRD includes the concept of ‘double materiality’. This mandates companies to go beyond reporting on their water-related environmental, social, and governance risks and requires them to include their impacts on water resources, such as their contribution to scarcity and pollution. This obligation encompasses companies’ operational activities as well as their value chains.

As one of the family of environmental footprints, the water footprint methodology is officially acknowledged by the European Sustainability Reporting Standards as a suitable approach for furnishing comprehensive water performance data across value chains, thus facilitating CSRD reporting.

Enterprises operating in Europe rely heavily on water resources beyond the region’s borders, a dependence often obscured within their supply chains. Europe imports considerable quantities of ‘virtual water’ indirectly through the products needed to meet its consumption demands, as depicted in Figure 1. This significant reliance underscores the likelihood of water being a material concern for most European companies through their value chains.

The water footprint methodology provides companies with the necessary data to evaluate supply chain risks, impacts and opportunities, and to set suitable water targets, actions, and policies.

Water reporting for companies under the CSRD
Water Footprint Implementation can assist companies seeking compliance with the CSRD reporting mandates. We offer expert guidance in collecting operational and supply chain data and provide expertise on how to effectively mitigate potential risks and address impacts throughout value chains by developing policies, setting targets, and devising action plans for water management.

Our datasets include standardised global water footprint data at (sub-)national levels for the production of numerous raw materials and industrial processes. This enables us to evaluate companies’ reliance on ‘virtual water’, as well as their water consumption, pollution levels and associated impacts, risks, and opportunities.

Provision of water data to CSRD consulting and accounting firms
Our services extend to consulting firms and accounting professionals seeking enhanced insights on water-related matters for client advisory or reporting revision purposes.

We can provide the water data required to help clients comply with requirements under ESRS 3 Water and Marine Resources, as well as the additional water-related indicators and metrics spread across the full range of European Sustainability Reporting Standards and the materiality assessment. We also offer access to our water footprint tools, which translate water footprint insights into actions to meet CSRD reporting standards. Leveraging this data, we offer guidance on policy formulation, target establishment, and action plan development.

Simplifying the water story
While the world of water is a complicated one, we believe it is our mission to simplify it and make water resource management as accessible for everyone as possible. Want to get started on water reporting but not sure where to begin? Perhaps the Water Materiality Checklist could be a good starting point for you and your company/organization!