Water saving tips

We make nearly 1 billion international trips each year. Imagine if we reduced our water consumption by just 5 litres... we would save enough water to meet the basic daily water needs of 50 million people!

Whether soaking up sun in the tropics, caravanning in Kent, or partying in the Balearics, there are simple steps we can all take to lessen the water impact of our holiday.

You can help challenge water abuse in tourism even more by taking Tourism Concern's WET Pledge.

What is water scarcity?

In simple terms, water scarcity means a physical absence of water. However, water scarcity also exists where there is a natural abundance of water, but where government, private sector or community resources and capacity are inadequate to ensure that people have sufficient access to it.

• Just 3 % of the Earth’s water is fresh and some 70% of this is frozen in the polar icecaps (SIWI)

• Water demand tripled in the last 50 years due to population growth and associated increasing demand from industrial and agricultural sectors (SIWI)

• Nearly 3 billion people currently live in water scarce conditions. This figure could rise to as much as 7 billion by 2025 (UN-Water 2007 & SIWI)

• Global warming is causing weather patterns to change, leading to prolonged periods of drought and increased flooding in many parts of the world, both of which contribute to water scarcity. This includes in many developing countries were tourism is being rapidly developed.

• Climate change is expected to account for about 20% of the global increase in water scarcity this century (2050 Project)

• Meanwhile, international tourism arrivals are expected to increase from 880 million in 2009 to over 1.5 billion by 2020 (UNWTO)