Performing a water footprint assessment for a semiconductor industry

In recent years, Intel Corporation (Intel) has established itself as a leader in assessing its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This leadership role was established after many years of effort driven by a wide range of external drivers. New demands by many of the same external entities now require companies like Intel to perform comprehensive reviews of their water footprints. Unlike carbon footprinting, the water footprint assessment framework is currently not well-defined. However, many of the steps taken in the GHG footprint arena have given us a significant head start for our reviews associated with water impacts. Intel´s water footprint assessment followed a parallel methodology as our carbon footprint assessment efforts. This included Intel´s manufacturing water usage, electricity production, and the majority of our supply chain for manufacturing. Our assessment revealed that Intel´s manufacturing, where we have been focused on water conservation for many years, requires the most amount of water. We also discovered that if it were not for our existing program to purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (REC), electricity production would have been the most water intensive. The vast limitations on obtaining water data from suppliers, and data on water use per electricity source creates obstacles on developing a more accurate water footprint. Intel has conducted their assessment conservatively and believes that gaining any knowledge on where their water impacts lie will provide information to aid in reducing their overall water impacts.