30th of January 2013, the World Resources Institute (WRI) launched their new peer reviewed online tool, that maps global water risk, using the latest highest resolution data available. The Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas was developed by the WRI and the Aqueduct Alliance (Bloomberg, Dow, DuPont, GE, Goldman Sachs, John Deere, Shell, Skoll Global Threats Fund, Talisman Energy, United Technologies, Veolia Water and the Dutch and Swedish Governments). The tool enables companies, investors, and governments to see how water stress will affect their operations, and help investors prioritise investments that increase water security.

The tool is a customisable global map, based on 12 indicators of physical, regulatory and reputational risk. Companies can use the tool to assess how water stress, flooding, access to water and drought can affect their operations. The map can also be tailored specifically for nine water-intense industry sectors: Agriculture; Food and Beverage; Chemicals; Electric Power; Semi Conductor; Oil and Gas; Mining; Construction Materials and Textiles.

Using the tool, companies can plot the locations of their facilities, new markets and suppliers etc. and compare those locations to potential exposure to water risk and seasonal variability.

See the tool here and the press release here.