{"id":1213,"date":"2021-03-23T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rbcwealthmanagement.com\/en-asia\/2021\/03\/23\/investing-in-the-future-opportunities-in-new-water-technologies\/"},"modified":"2024-02-05T09:35:23","modified_gmt":"2024-02-05T14:35:23","slug":"investing-in-the-future-opportunities-in-new-water-technologies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rbcwealthmanagement.com\/en-asia\/insights\/investing-in-the-future-opportunities-in-new-water-technologies","title":{"rendered":"Investing in the future: Opportunities in new water technologies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Global warming and population growth are threatening the world’s freshwater supplies. Governments, organizations and businesses are trying to tackle water scarcity as part of the United Nations <\/span>2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development <\/a>, but <\/span>by 2030, billions of people will not have access to safe drinking water <\/a> at home unless the rate of progress quadruples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rising demand for water efficiency and management solutions opens up an array of investment opportunities in new technologies, infrastructure and innovation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world water crisis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nearly three-quarters of the Earth is water, but just three percent of that is freshwater. Of that three, <\/span>only one percent is accessible <\/a> <\/span>to nearly seven billion people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once we consider the effects of pollution, how much water is wasted and how much is used for food supply, we can easily see that the demand for fresh water outweighs the supply. Data from the World Resources Institute <\/a> estimates that an additional one billion people are expected to live with extremely high water stress by 2050. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Juan Aronna<\/a>, head of Investment Solutions and Products at RBC Wealth Management in Asia, notes population growth and urbanization are two main factors behind the increasing demand for water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to <\/span>data from the United Nations <\/a>, 55 percent of the world’s population was living in urban areas in 2022, with the figure expected to rise to 70 percent by 2050. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This will increase demand on both aging infrastructure and food production \u2013 two things that use considerable amounts of water. Old infrastructure contributes to water loss through leaky pipes and inefficiencies in the water supply chain. Agriculture is also responsible for using <\/span>70 percent of the global freshwater supply<\/a> <\/span>with livestock being the most water-demanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investing in more than new technology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There’s more to investing in water solutions than being an early investor in the latest tech device that can pinpoint leaks in old water pipes or a plant that attempts to make ocean water fit for human consumption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stephen Metcalf, head of Sustainable Investing at RBC Wealth Management in the British Isles and Asia, says there are four main areas of focus when it comes to investing in water management: <\/p>\n\n\n\n