A new initiative has been unveiled in the United States with the goal of bringing together multinational corporations, technology firms, and water utilities. Microsoft, PepsiCo, FIDO Tech (a leak sizing solution company), and Oldcastle Infrastructure collaborated to create the ‘Water, United’ initiative. Water Foundry and Atlantean Media have been tasked with managing this project.
‘Water United’ aims to unite both public and private sectors to accelerate water-related initiatives throughout the Colorado River basin. Will Sarni, the Founder and CEO of Water Foundry, highlighted the challenges faced by the Colorado River basin due to climate change, emphasizing the basin’s inability to meet the demands of its numerous users under current and projected conditions.
The Colorado River supports over 40 million people across seven Western states and contributes to an estimated US$1.4 trillion in economic activity and 16 million jobs.
The initial project is set to commence with the Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD), a non-profit water utility serving over 1.7 million individuals.
‘Water, United’ builds upon an existing collaboration between Microsoft and FIDO Tech aimed at reducing water network losses through actionable artificial intelligence (AI), initially launched in London, UK, and subsequently expanded to Phoenix, Arizona, and Querétaro, Mexico.
In 2020, Microsoft announced that it would be working to become water positive by 2030. To get there, the organisation is focusing on five key pillars: reducing water use intensity, replenishing more water than it consumes, increasing access to water and sanitation services for people across the globe, driving innovation to scale water solutions, and advocating for effective water policy.
Eliza Roberts, water lead at Microsoft, said, “To help replenish water sources and meet our 2030 water positive ambitions, we are focused on driving innovation to scale water solutions.”
The World Bank estimates that globally, approximately 30% of piped water is lost before reaching customers, primarily due to leaks and theft. Developing nations lose around 45 million cubic meters of water daily, valued at over $3 billion annually.
PepsiCo’s senior director of global climate and water solutions, David Grant, highlighted PepsiCo’s commitment to becoming net water positive in their operations by 2030 as part of their PepsiCo Positive (pep+) agenda. The aim is to replenish more water than used back into local supplies to bring about positive long-term changes in at-risk watersheds through a focus on scale, partnership, innovation, and engagement from all stakeholders in each catchment area – the core objective of ‘Water, United.’
Source :FIDO Tech
