Skip to the disclosure focus

Disclosure LibraryPractitioner guidance for every reporting disclosure

ESRS E3: Water·Disclosure Requirement E3-4

Water metrics

Practical guidance for preparing this disclosure. Use this card to identify the information to prepare, verify claims and organise supporting evidence. For exact requirements, always refer to the official European Commission source.

Open official European Commission source ↗ Share

Published passport

Last reviewed 2026-07-24
RK Reviewed by Dr Ross KurinkoLinkedIn Strategic ESG Advisor · IFRS S1 & S2 / GRI / ESRS expert GRI Certified Global Trainer · PhD, University of Cambridge · ESG-AI expert 15+ years on FTSE 100 & Fortune Global 500 disclosures Canary Wharf, London LRA educational guidance · Not issued or endorsed by European Commission

Standard

ESRS E3: Water

Disclosure Requirement E3-4 · 2026-5010-final

Effective

—

Official source: Open ↗

Last reviewed

2026-07-24

LRA educational guidance · Not issued or endorsed by European Commission

To prepare this disclosure
12LRA preparation fields 12claims to verify 12evidence areas

Disclosure focus

E3-4 reports six metrics for own operations: total water consumption, total water consumption in areas with water stress, total water withdrawal, total water discharge, total water recycled and reused, and total water stored.

Each metric is reported in cubic metres or multiples thereof. Water consumption, withdrawal and discharge are distinct defined concepts; water use is not a substitute for water consumption.

Recycled and reused water form one required combined metric. Separate recycling and reuse figures may be added as entity-specific information but must not replace the combined total.

This LRA educational guidance supports disclosure preparation. For the exact requirements, always refer to the official European Commission source.

Before you start

Before you start

A quick mental checklist before you prepare this disclosure — tick each as you settle it.

Preparation

Key information to prepare

Preparation field What to capture Evidence hint Owner
Total water consumption Report total water consumption for own operations in cubic metres or multiples thereof. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water consumption. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Water consumption in areas with water stress Report total water consumption in areas with water stress. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting water consumption in areas with water stress. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Total water withdrawal Report total water withdrawal. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water withdrawal. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Total water discharge Report total water discharge. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water discharge. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Total water recycled and reused Report the combined total of water recycled and reused. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water recycled and reused. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Total water stored Report total water stored. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water stored. Environment / Sustainability reporting
Metric and unit State the metric and unit of measurement. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting metric and unit. Sustainability reporting
Relationship to material matters Explain the metric's relationship to material impacts, risks or opportunities and to policies, actions or targets where relevant. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting relationship to material matters. Sustainability reporting
Methodology and sources Describe the measurement or calculation methodology, source data and significant assumptions. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting methodology and sources. Sustainability reporting
Scope and boundary State the reporting boundary, scope limitations and any applicable ESRS 1 relief. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting scope and boundary. Sustainability reporting
Validation State whether and how the metric was validated by an external body other than the assurance provider. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting validation. Sustainability reporting
Comparatives and changes Provide required comparative information and explain changes in definitions or methodologies where applicable. Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting comparatives and changes. Sustainability reporting
＋ Show E3-4 sub-elements (LRA working checklist)

How to prepare it

Use own operations and the reporting boundary required by ESRS 1; preserve the defined terms and combined recycled-and-reused metric.
Collect and reconcile the records for: Total water consumption; Water consumption in areas with water stress; Total water withdrawal; Total water discharge; Total water recycled and reused; Total water stored; Metric and unit; Relationship to material matters; Methodology and sources; Scope and boundary; Validation; Comparatives and changes.
Separate recycling and reuse may be shown only as additional information alongside the required combined total.
Draft the response using the defined terms shown in the disclosure focus; do not substitute broader internal labels.
Review the final wording against every requirement and the supporting governance or data records before sign-off.

Request the data

Request the disclosure evidence

Translate the disclosure into an internal business question — then adapt it to your organisation's own language.

Provide the water balance, source records, six metric calculations, units, areas-with-water-stress mapping, boundary reconciliation, assumptions, validation and comparative information.

Use the organisation's own role and document names, but preserve the defined ESRS terms and the scope described above.

Better request

Provide the water balance, source records, six metric calculations, units, areas-with-water-stress mapping, boundary reconciliation, assumptions, validation and comparative information.

Draft your disclosure

Notes that turn data into a disclosure

LRA training templates — adapt them to your organisation, and check the official source before sign-off.

Method note

Reconcile withdrawal, discharge, consumption, storage and recycled-and-reused flows without double counting and document estimation methods.

Context note

Explain acquisitions, disposals, scope changes or reliefs through the applicable ESRS requirements rather than an invented fluctuation rule.

Download Centre

Preparation tools & forms

Professional preparation tools for E3-4 — free with an LRA Community membership. Register once (it's free) and every download unlocks, together with the Disclosure Library, templates and the LRA AI Assistant.

Free · Community members
01XLSPrep & Assurance workbookDatapoints, risks, evidence to check, owner and evidence pack.Get it free ↧ 02XLSData-request packRequest email, message template, response fields and sign-off structure.Get it free ↧ 03PDFLibrary CardPrintable one-page summary of this disclosure card.Get it free ↧

Assurance readiness

For each claim, check the evidence

Claim Risk Evidence to check
Total water consumption is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates total water consumption.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water consumption.
Water consumption in areas with water stress is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates water consumption in areas with water stress.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting water consumption in areas with water stress.
Total water withdrawal is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates total water withdrawal.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water withdrawal.
Total water discharge is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates total water discharge.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water discharge.
Total water recycled and reused is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates total water recycled and reused.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water recycled and reused.
Total water stored is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates total water stored.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting total water stored.
Metric and unit is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates metric and unit.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting metric and unit.
Relationship to material matters is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates relationship to material matters.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting relationship to material matters.
Methodology and sources is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates methodology and sources.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting methodology and sources.
Scope and boundary is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates scope and boundary.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting scope and boundary.
Validation is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates validation.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting validation.
Comparatives and changes is reported accurately and completely.The response omits, misclassifies or overstates comparatives and changes.Dated source records, governance papers and approval evidence supporting comparatives and changes.

Evidence pack to prepare

Common reporting gaps

Using water use instead of water consumption.
Using water-scarce instead of areas with water stress.
Splitting recycled and reused water into two required metrics.
Reporting an incomplete boundary.
Presenting methodology controls as topical datapoints.
✓ LRA AI Assistant · Human-in-the-loop
Dr Ross Kurinko

Ask the Study Studio AI Assistant about this disclosure

Get practical answers for your reporting context. Your first two answers are free — join LRA Community for free to continue without a limit.

Try How do I prepare E3-4? What data do I need to collect? What mistakes should I avoid?
2 free answers

Framework references

Relevant ESRS requirements and related disclosures

Available framework references and nearby disclosures relevant to preparing this requirement.

ESRS

E3-4

within ESRS E3: Water

Open official source →

Related & explore

Policies (Water) → CardActions & Resources → CardTargets → Card Browse all disclosures →

More in ESRS E3 → Browse full catalogue → Disclosure Library home → Search all disclosures →

Go deeper · E3-4

Learn to prepare this disclosure end-to-end

This guide covers one Disclosure Requirement. The ESRS / CSRD Reporting course walks the full European workflow — double materiality, datapoints, evidence and assurance — with exercises on your own data.

Available as Guided Flex, Live Cohort, 1:1 Expert Mentorship or Corporate Programme.

Explore the ESRS / CSRD course →
How this library is built 312 published reports indexed 63,171 pages with page-level citations 272 practitioner-built Disclosure Cards
/en/knowledge-hub/disclosure-cards/esrs-e3-4/