NAT.C04.ED Improving Business Partner Practices on Right to Water and Sanitation
About the data
This metric was designed by The World Benchmarking Alliance, more information can be found here. Sources and Alignments for each indicator can be found here as well as the scoring guidelines here
The World Benchmarking Alliance's Nature Benchmark measures and ranks the world's most influential companies on their efforts to protect our environment and its biodiversity.
This metric relates to the Indicator: The company respects the right to water and does not negatively affect access to safe water.
Rationale: Water scarcity affects more than 40% of people around the world – an alarming figure that is projected to increase due to climate change (UN, 2021). Water challenges include not only water scarcity but also pollution, flooding and access to drinking water and sanitation services. Companies are expected to adopt water stewardship practices that ensure water use and treatment are socially equitable and environmentally sustainable (UNGC, 2007).
Methodology
WBA analysed all publicly available group-level disclosure in English on the applicable group website, which was predominantly annual reports and sustainability reports. Draft assessments were then sent to each company inviting them to provide feedback. This feedback could include additional publicly available group disclosure published. These were then reviewed and finalised. Final assessments were then shared with each company before being published online.
For this metric the company should indicate how it is working with its business relationships, for example, working with suppliers to build their capacity and improve their practices on access to water and sanitation. This could include training, tools and resources developed for suppliers, or awareness programmes. Access to water or local communities must be explicitly referenced, not just water usage or environmental targets in general.