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I flussi globali di acqua virtuale: un problema di sostenibilità per le produzioni agro-alimentari? Un’analisi geo-cartografica
Global flows of virtual water: a sustainability problem for agri-food production? A geo-cartographic analysis
Sarri, Chiara
Menegat, Stefano
Besana, Angelo
Bagliani, Marco
Pietta, Antonella Dosolina
2023
Abstract
The growing importance of international networks in agri-food supply chains poses an increasingly relevant and urgent need to reflect from an inter-scalar perspective on the sustainability of these productions and, in particular, on the global use of the natural resources employed in them, to start with the water ones. Agriculture represents the sector that consumes the largest amount of fresh water globally.
Given the uneven distribution of these resources, trade in agricultural products could represent a possible efficient solution for using fresh water if trade flows were directed from countries with greater water resources (both in physical and economic terms) to countries with less availability, access and efficiency in the use of water. However, since the environmental characteristics and availability of resources of individual countries are not the only factors at play, international trade in agricultural commodities tends, instead, to reinforce inefficiencies and inequities, also in the use and (re)distribution of water resources. For a correct assessment of the sustainability of the overall agri-food supply chains, it is therefore essential to think on a global scale by investigating more carefully which water resources are incorporated into the product flows and how these are exchanged. In this regard, this contribution proposes a methodology of analysis and geo-cartographic representation based on an international virtual water indicator of food production and the mapping of its expressions.
La crescente importanza delle reti internazionali nelle filiere agro-alimentari pone in misura sempre più rilevante e urgente la necessità di riflettere in un’ottica interscalare sulla sostenibilità di queste produzioni e, in particolare, sull’utilizzo globale delle risorse naturali in esse impiegate, a cominciare da quelle idriche. L’agricoltura rappresenta il settore che più consuma acqua dolce a livello globale.
Vista la distribuzione disomogenea di tali risorse, gli scambi di prodotti agricoli potrebbero rappresentare una possibile soluzione efficiente di utilizzo dell’acqua dolce se i flussi commerciali fossero diretti da Paesi con maggiori risorse idriche (sia in termini fisici che economici) a Paesi con minore presenza, accesso ed efficienza nell’uso dell’acqua. Tuttavia, non essendo le caratteristiche ambientali e le disponibilità di risorse dei singoli Paesi gli unici fattori in gioco, gli scambi internazionali di commodities agricole tendono, invece, a rafforzare inefficienze ed iniquità, anche nell’utilizzo e (re)distribuzione delle risorse idriche.
Per una corretta valutazione della sostenibilità delle complessive filiere agro-alimentari, risulta quindi fondamentale ragionare alla scala globale indagando più attentamente quali siano le risorse idriche incorporate nei flussi di prodotti e come queste vengano scambiate.
Il presente contributo propone, al riguardo, una metodologia di analisi e rappresentazione geo-cartografica fondata su un indicatore internazionale di acqua virtuale delle produzioni alimentari e la mappatura delle sue espressioni.
The growing importance of international networks in agri-food supply chains poses an increasingly relevant and urgent need to reflect from an inter-scalar perspective on the sustainability of these productions and, in particular, on the global use of the natural resources employed in them, to start with the water ones. Agriculture represents the sector that consumes the largest amount of fresh water globally.
Given the uneven distribution of these resources, trade in agricultural products could represent a possible efficient solution for using fresh water if trade flows were directed from countries with greater water resources (both in physical and economic terms) to countries with less availability, access and efficiency in the use of water. However, since the environmental characteristics and availability of resources of individual countries are not the only factors at play, international trade in agricultural commodities tends, instead, to reinforce inefficiencies and inequities, also in the use and (re)distribution of water resources. For a correct assessment of the sustainability of the overall agri-food supply chains, it is therefore essential to think on a global scale by investigating more carefully which water resources are incorporated into the product flows and how these are exchanged. In this regard, this contribution proposes a methodology of analysis and geo-cartographic representation based on an international virtual water indicator of food production and the mapping of its expressions.
Source
Chiara Sarri, Stefano Menegat, Angelo Besana, Marco Baglaini, Antonella Dosolina Pietta, "I flussi globali di acqua virtuale: un problema di sostenibilità per le produzioni agro-alimentari? Un’analisi geo-cartografica" in: "Bollettino dell'Associazione Italiana di Cartografia 179 (2023)", EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste, Trieste, 2023, pp. 92-107
Languages
it
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
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