Water exploitation index, plus (WEI+)

The water exploitation index (WEI+) provides a measure of total water consumption as a percentage of the renewable freshwater resources available for a given territory and period It quantifies how much water is abstracted and how much water is returned to the environment by economic sectors before or after use. The difference between water abstractions and water returns is regarded as ‘water consumption’. In the absence of Europe-wide agreed formal targets, values above 20 % are generally considered to be a sign of water scarcity, while values equal or greater than 40 % indicate situations of severe water scarcity, meaning the use of freshwater resources is unsustainable. Annual calculations of the WEI+ at national level do not reflect uneven spatial and seasonal distribution of resources and may therefore mask water stress, which occurs on a seasonal or regional basis. The indicator is produced by the EEA based on modelling data from the WISE SoE-Water quantity database (WISE 3) and other open sources (Eurostat, OECD) and including gap filling methods.