Economic and Sustainability Inequalities and Water Consumption of European Union Countries

Abstract

Water scarcity is becoming a global concern for many reasons as its consumption increases. This research aimed to analyze sustainability inequalities in the water consumption of EU countries. Descriptive statistics using data for four AQUASTAT periods (2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017), and quotients for the AQUASTAT 2017 period, were calculated using a proposed econometric model. The main results were that countries with high GPD and population showed high water stress and total water withdrawal. Countries with lower industry-value-added-to-GDP quotients were among those with higher industrial water use efficiency, while low water-services-use-efficiency quotients were associated with high services value added to GDP. Suggestions for policymakers are provided and formula application guidelines for regional-level comparisons are described.