01/11/2013
Title: Quenching the Thirst for Future Growth
Abstract
Water is an increasingly urgent dimension of the business strategy for Data Centers. Water stewardship can impact brand, total cost of operations (Water/Energy Nexus) and shareholder return. Water challenges drive location, size, and future expansion plans for global Data Center decision makers. These facts underscore the need to manage water carefully. The challenge is initiating a cascading approach to water use from conservation to reuse to recycling. We will present the facts driving water stewardship practices along with the changing business landscape and critical need to address the future state of water availability.
Outline
· A new sense of urgency surrounds the issue of freshwater availability for global Data Center decision makers
· Increasingly, water access and costs are influencing whether a company can commence, expand or simply maintain its operations at particular locations
· Water challenges can drive location, size, and future expansion plans significantly impacting Data Center business strategies
· The issues of water scarcity, pollution and increases in the cost of energy expose industry, and the communities in which they operate, to increased risks
· These risks can be categorized as physical (volume and quantity of water), reputational or regulatory, and they can impact brand, total cost of operation and shareholder return
· Industry will increasingly need to look along and beyond their own value chains and work to unite communities, governments and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) to address water access challenges holistically. The United Nations (UN) Global Compact and CEO Water Mandate have made significant strides in fostering public-private collaboration aligning sustainability principles with business activities in the private sector.
· In July 2007 the UN Secretary-General introduced the CEO Water Mandate as a unique public-private initiative designed to support companies in the development, implementation, and disclosure of water sustainability policies and practices.
· Private sector signatories of the CEO Water Mandate such as Coca-Cola, Bayer, Dow, Merck, Nestle and Nike (among many others) are mobilizing on the principles and practices of water conservation and stewardship.
· Collaboration presents the best opportunity for a company to reduce its water-related risks. This has been greatly enhanced by the recent creation of the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) and its reinforcement through the combined support of water-centric NGOs and major corporations. Many are expecting that the introduction of the AWS Standard will further promote advancements in water stewardship by providing additional incentives such as certification.
· The AWS International Water Stewardship Standard (the Standard) is designed to be an international, ISEAL-compliant, standard that defines a set of water stewardship principles, criteria, and indicators for how water should be stewarded at a site and watershed level in a way that is environmentally, socially, and economically beneficial.
Biographies
Steve Spiwak
Senior Industry Development Manager
Nalco, An Ecolab Company
Steve is currently a Senior Industry Development Manager for Nalco, An Ecolab Company, where he is responsible for managing the data center industry globally. His additional responsibilities include developing new innovative technologies focused on conserving water. He has presented and written numerous articles on water treatment and conservation. Prior to Nalco he was a staff chemist for Commonwealth Edison and received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Dayton. Spiwak can be reached at .
Emilio Tenuta
Vice President, Corporate Sustainability
Nalco, an Ecolab Company
Emilio is currently Vice President of Corporate Sustainability Ecolab and has been with the company for 28 years. He is responsible for linking Ecolab’s market strategy with the sustainable solutions offered to more than 70,000 Ecolab customers in over 160 countries. In the last two years he has forged strong partnerships with a number of NGO’s around managing water and energy risks in the industrial sector. Those organizations include World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), World Economic Forum (WEF) and the United Nations. He has more than 25 years of technical sales and marketing experience in various industries including Food and Beverage, Pharmaceutical, Primary Metals and Automotive. He holds a bachelor’s of science degree in chemistry from University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a master’s of business degree from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management.