Directive 2008/98/EC is the reference law for EU waste policy. It establishes the waste hierarchy, extended producer responsibility and recycling targets, and has been amended by Directives 2018/851 and 2025/1892.
Water degradation explained: its chemical, biological, quantity and hydromorphological dimensions, the structural causes, the indicators used to track it, and what it means for ESG.
Waste emissions are the greenhouse gases released across the collection, treatment and disposal of waste.
Water scarcity occurs when demand for water persistently outstrips the renewable supply available in a region, with growing physical, economic and institutional dimensions.
Waste gasification is a thermochemical process that converts non-recyclable carbon-based materials into a synthesis gas (syngas) that can be used as fuel or as a chemical feedstock.
Water governance covers who decides on water, how, and with what means. The OECD's 12 Principles (2015) are the leading reference for effective, efficient and inclusive water policy.
Waste prevention is the set of measures taken before a material or product becomes waste, to reduce the quantity generated, its environmental and health impact, and its content of hazardous substances.
Sorting plants separate recyclable materials from collected waste, turning source separation into real recovery and feeding secondary raw materials back into the economy.
A waste transfer station is an intermediate facility that receives, compacts and forwards waste to treatment or disposal sites, cutting transport costs and emissions.
Waste traceability is the documented tracking of every waste stream from the point it is generated to its final treatment in an authorised facility, a core part of the circular economy.
What water budget transparency is, what should be disclosed, the digital tools and participation mechanisms that enable it, and its growing links to climate finance and ESG.
Virtual water is the hidden water embedded in goods and services. When products are traded internationally, this water effectively moves between regions and river basins.
A marketplace for buying and selling carbon credits outside mandatory schemes, used by companies to offset residual emissions under integrity criteria.
Waste-to-energy uses the energy content of non-recyclable waste to produce electricity, heat or alternative fuels, ranking above landfill but below recycling.
WEEE recycling plants are industrial facilities specialised in treating, decontaminating and recovering materials from discarded electrical and electronic equipment, a key part of the circular economy and critical-raw-material supply.
WELL Certification, run by the International WELL Building Institute, rates how a building supports the health and wellbeing of its occupants across ten concepts, from air and water to mind and community.
Waste drop-off areas (áreas de aportación) are public points where residents deposit separated household waste, supporting separate collection, recycling and the circular economy.
The waste hierarchy is the guiding principle of EU and Spanish waste policy. It orders management options into five levels, from prevention down to disposal in landfill.
Water adaptation brings together the measures that reduce the vulnerability of people, economies and ecosystems to droughts, floods and growing water scarcity.
A water balance quantifies the inputs, outputs and storage changes of water in a basin, city or company, revealing whether the resource is in surplus or deficit.
A Water CBAM is a discussed, not-yet-existing idea for a border charge on water-intensive imports from scarce basins, modelled loosely on the EU's carbon CBAM.
A water deficit occurs when demand for water outstrips effective availability, leading to restrictions, aquifer overexploitation and environmental and economic stress.
The Water Dependency Index (WDI) measures the share of a territory's, sector's or company's total water footprint that is satisfied through imported virtual water.
The water footprint is a sustainability indicator that quantifies the volume of freshwater used, directly and indirectly, to produce goods and services, split into blue, green and grey components.
A Water Footprint Assessment quantifies blue, green and grey water use across a product or organisation and assesses whether that use is sustainable, supporting water risk management and ESG disclosure.
WFA is a structured, four-phase method to measure the blue, green and grey water footprint, judge its sustainability and design responses. It underpins corporate water stewardship and reporting.
The Water Footprint Assessment Manual is the reference methodological guide for calculating, interpreting and managing the water footprint of products and organisations.
The Water Footprint Network (WFN) is an international non-profit founded in 2008 to promote sustainable and equitable water management through research, methodology and the water footprint concept.
Water impact is the full set of environmental, social and economic effects of using or polluting water, going beyond simple consumption to include quality, ecosystems and access.
A guide to water leakage: real versus apparent losses, the IWA water balance, key indicators such as Non-Revenue Water, and the technologies and financing models used to reduce losses.
Discover what Water Life Cycle Assessment (Water LCA) is, how it applies to products and companies, which standards regulate it, and how it supports water management.
Water neutrality combines reducing an organisation's water footprint with replenishing or offsetting the remaining use, so the net effect on water availability and quality is neutral or positive.
Water offsetting is a voluntary mechanism through which an organisation balances its residual water footprint by funding projects that deliver equivalent or greater benefits for water availability, quality and access elsewhere.
What the Water Poverty Index is, its five components, how it is calculated, its applications and limitations, and how it complements other water indicators.
Water resilience is the ability of a basin, city, industry or ecosystem to anticipate, absorb, adapt to and recover from water-related shocks such as droughts and floods while maintaining its essential functions.
A water resilience index combines supply, demand, storage, source diversity and governance into a single score of how well a system withstands droughts and other water shocks.
Discover what a Water Risk Assessment is, which methodologies and tools exist, and how companies and governments use it to manage water scarcity, quality and regulatory risks.
The Water Scarcity Footprint based on AWARE (Available Water Remaining) is a Life Cycle Impact Assessment indicator that weights freshwater consumption by the water scarcity of the basin where the use occurs.
Water security is the capacity to ensure sustainable access to sufficient, acceptable-quality water for people, economic activity and ecosystems, while managing risks such as droughts, floods and pollution.
Water stress is the condition in which water demand exceeds available renewable resources over a period, or where poor water quality limits how the resource can be used.
The Water Stress Index (WSI) measures the relationship between water availability and human demand in a region, helping identify critical areas and water-related risks.
Water vulnerability measures how susceptible a basin, community, company or ecosystem is to harm from changes in water availability, quality and access, combining exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity.
A water governance index assesses the institutions and rules behind water decisions, not the water itself. A guide to its dimensions, its link to the OECD framework and its ESG relevance.
Water justice holds that access to, use and distribution of water must be fair, democratic and sustainable, treating water as a human right and common good rather than a market commodity.
Using reclaimed water (treated and reconditioned) for purposes that do not need drinking water. A key lever against scarcity, regulated in the EU and Spain.
Regulatory updates and product news, once a month.