Engineering and sustainability consultancy firm Apex has reviewed water-related disclosure practices at 58 publicly listed companies that obtained independent assurance on their water data in 2024-2025.
It found that 70% reports included disclosures on total water withdrawal and total water consumption, however only 5% companies disclosed metrics on water quality. In addition, only 14% firms reported on water withdrawals in high-stress regions.
CDP's water disclosures were adopted by 19 companies disclosing through the questionnaire, whilst nine entities reporting in line with the GRI standards.
Apex also found that 44 companies used internal company protocols as the primary criteria for reporting, and 18 relied exclusively on internal standards.