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Checklist of Common Areas of Water Use and Reliance

As you begin to identify key water uses, this checklist can help you consider the broad range of areas where your company may be connected to water.

For each stage in the value chain, be sure to consider indirect water uses that may be associated with suppliers', employees', and customers' use of, or reliance on, water.

Be sure to consider water uses in each of these common categories:

  1. Residential and Domestic
  2. Landscape
  3. Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional
  4. Agricultural

Consider the following areas for key water uses:

Irrigation of crops
  Irrigation of lawns/landscaping, etc.
  Cleaning of raw materials
  Cleaning and rinsing of parts during production
  Maintenance of parts, equipment, facilities, vehicles, etc.
  Waste handling
  Drinking by people and/or animals
  Employee residential use
  Food preparation
  Product component or manufacturing input
  Ingredient for key supplies
  Industrial processing
  Process heating/cooling
  Space heating/cooling (e.g., boiler water, steam)
  Power generation (e.g., hydropower, thermal, nuclear)
  Fire suppression
  Movement/transportation of materials or goods (e.g., water slurry, ballast water)


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