Overview
ISO/TR 14073:2017 - Environmental management - Water footprint - Illustrative examples on how to apply ISO 14046 - is a technical report that provides practical, worked examples for conducting water footprint assessments based on life cycle assessment (LCA) principles. The document does not replace ISO 14046’s requirements for full study reporting; instead, it demonstrates particular aspects of applying ISO 14046 through diverse examples (products, processes, organizations) to help practitioners understand methodological choices and interpretation.
Key topics and technical coverage
- Guidance on selecting the type of water footprint assessment, including goal-and-scope framing aligned with ISO 14046.
- Illustrative examples (A–R) covering:
- Water inventory procedures for power plants, rice cultivation, packaging, textiles, aluminium, municipal water management, hotels, reservoirs and more.
- Impact assessment approaches such as water scarcity footprint, water availability footprint, and water eutrophication footprint.
- Interpretation and reporting considerations for different study scopes (cradle-to-gate, organization-level, direct vs. comprehensive).
- Technical elements included: terms and definitions, symbols/abbreviations, inventory data handling, assessment method choices, and presentation of results.
- Issues arising in water footprint studies: seasonality, use of baseline/reference conditions, evaporation/evapotranspiration, and water quality considerations.
Practical applications and who should use it
ISO/TR 14073:2017 is useful for:
- LCA practitioners and environmental consultants implementing ISO 14046 water footprint studies.
- Sustainability and environmental managers in manufacturing (packaging, textiles, chemicals, aluminium), agriculture (rice, maize), utilities and municipalities seeking to quantify water impacts.
- Product designers and procurement teams integrating water footprint insights into product development and sourcing.
- Regulators, auditors and certification bodies looking for consistent examples of methodology application.
Practical uses include choosing assessment boundaries, handling location- and season-specific data, comparing water scarcity across supply chain stages, and preparing interpretable results for stakeholders.
Related standards
- ISO 14046 (primary standard for water footprint assessments)
- ISO 14040 / ISO 14044 (life cycle assessment principles and requirements)
These standards together form the normative framework for conducting and reporting robust water footprint and LCA studies.
Keywords: ISO/TR 14073:2017, ISO 14046, water footprint, life cycle assessment, water scarcity footprint, water eutrophication, environmental management, water availability, seasonality, inventory, impact assessment.
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