Sustainability Summit Urges Shift to Treated Water as Industrial Resource
At a sustainability summit, experts and industry players called for treating waste water as an economic resource, with oil majors seeking to replace freshwater use.
Industry leaders and researchers have called for a shift in how India's industries view waste water, arguing that it should be treated as an economic resource rather than a disposable by-product. The discussion took place at a sustainability summit, where participants examined ways to reduce pressure on freshwater sources.
Oil companies are seeking to replace their freshwater intake with treated water, a move that could significantly lower industrial demand on rivers, lakes and groundwater. The shift would involve using recycled or reclaimed water for operations that currently rely on fresh supplies.
An expert at the summit dismissed the notion that desalination is prohibitively expensive, and called for leveraging Chennai's extensive coastline to expand desalination capacity. The city's coastal location, the expert suggested, offers a strategic advantage for producing water suitable for industrial use.
Separately, a professor from IIT Madras noted that technology can play a key role in monitoring the groundwater situation. Improved monitoring tools could help authorities and industries better understand extraction patterns and availability, supporting more informed decisions about water use.
The deliberations reflect a growing focus on sustainable water management, with industries under pressure to adopt practices that conserve freshwater resources while meeting operational needs.