Businesses are mapping their global supply chains and gaining an understanding of whether their production is sourced from areas where water is scarce or suffers from quality issues. A report by WWF-UK points out that businesses sourcing from water-scarce regions face physical, regulatory and reputational risks. China, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, account for almost 60 per cent of clothing imports – all have high risks across at least two water risk categories. Turkey is also a significant sourcing country and has a high physical water risk as a result of water scarcity.

If a company relies heavily on clothing from Faisalabad in Pakistan, or the Yellow River area in China – both centers for clothing production – their water risks will be high as a result of water scarcity or quality problems. Another important consideration is the indirect risks for clothing through supply chains. For example, the production of cotton, a key raw material for the sector, relies heavily on water. Even if textile production sites are not located in areas of high water risk the cotton supply chain is likely to be exposed to high risks, given that the top three producers, China, India and Pakistan, all have high water risks for cotton production. More than half of UK clothing imports are sourced from areas of high water scarcity risk.