Can Australia afford to export water intensive goods?
Chances are you are wearing cotton today – it represents almost half the fibre used to make clothes and other textiles worldwide. But it is a crop that has a big impact on the planet's resources. Salima Rhemtulla looks at how much Australian water leaves the country with each cotton export.
Many of us, including those directly affected by the last drought here in Australia, have forgotten the hardships that were suffered. Well, perhaps not all of us have forgotten. But, then why is it that we continue to grow water intensive crops such as cotton and rice in areas such as the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), where water shortages are leading to ecological collapse?
Cotton is the biggest user of irrigation water in the MDB and in the period 2010-2011, this amounted to approximately 1,789 gigalitres or 40% of the total water extracted for irrigation from the MDB. What is even more heart wrenching, is that the majority of the cotton grown in the MDB is exported.
‘Virtual water’ is a term used to refer to the water used in the production of a product or service. When a country exports a product, in essence it also exports water in virtual form. The virtual water concept is a useful tool in that it brings awareness to the amount of water used to produce a good or service. It also allows us to decipher which products have the greatest impact on the water system and where water savings could potentially be achieved. Nations with scarce water resources can decide to produce less water-intensive goods and instead import these water-intensive goods from nations with greater amounts of available water resources.
Australia is one of the largest gross virtual water exporters in the world and according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Australia was the third largest exporter of cotton for the period 2010-2011, behind the U.S. and India.
The big question we should all ask ourselves is can we, Australia, afford to grow such water intensive crops for export to other countries while putting our own, domestic water resources at risk?
Many would argue for the economic and social gains of cotton production and export. Indeed, there is much economic gain for the region and many livelihoods are dependent on cotton production and trade in the MDB. But, what about future generations? At the current rate, how much longer can we continue to exploit our water resources for short-term economic gain? What about in a few years when the next drought hits? Climate change and variability are only expected to become more prevalent in the coming years. Science clearly tells us that current water extraction rates in the MDB are not sustainable, and are likely to lead to widespread ecological collapse. The short-term economic gain will come at a cost to all of us. It is crucial that water trade policy in the MDB be examined and water saving initiatives in the region be more thoroughly analysed and effectively implemented.
Agriculture is the largest user of fresh water resources and this will continue to remain a pressing issue as our global population continues to grow. There have been many wonderful technological advances in the area of irrigation, leading to greater water efficiency, such as drip and sensor irrigation systems. I have no doubt that these technological advances will continue, however it will not be enough. We all, each and every one of us, have to do our share. Water scarce countries, including Australia, should not be endangering domestic water resources for the production of water intensive agricultural commodities period, let alone for export. For my complete research paper titled Cotton and Virtual Water in the Murray-Darling Basin, please visit the link on the Friends of the Earth Australia website here.
I do realise that we require cotton to produce the fabrics we use and wear daily, but do we need to produce so much of it? What about other substitutes? A study released a few years ago by the Stockholm Environment Institute comparing the water use of cotton, hemp and polyester states the requirement of water to produce 1kg of cotton is approximately 9,788-9,958 litres, whereas the water requirement to produce the same amount of useful hemp matter is on average less than one third this amount at 2,041-3,401 litres. Industrial hemp production is legal (but tightly regulated) in a few countries including Canada and Australia. In Western Australia, the industry is regulated under the Industrial Hemp Act of 2004.
For a great illustrative depiction of the virtual water concept including what you, the average consumer can do to help, I came across a great website designed and created by Angela Morelli, which you can view here. Our water resources are precious and should not be gambled for short-term gain. Fight for our water, fight for our darling Murray.
Salima Rhemtulla has completed a graduate degree in Integrated Water Resources Management and is currently working in Queensland on flood restoration and relief projects for regional councils. She also volunteers with Friends of the Earth Australia and has been involved in campaigning for sustainable water diversion limits in the Murray-Darling Basin.
Jeremy Frame
October 13, 2012 at 6:45 am
Virtual water
Thank you for a very interesting and relevant article. Is it not true that we also grow and export rice in large quantities? I don’t have any figures, but I do know that rice is a very water intensive crop, and I believe we also export it to China, which is a little ironic.