Grey Water Footprint Research Articles

The grey water footprint of milk due to nitrate leaching from dairy farms in Canterbury, New Zealand

ABSTRACT The Canterbury Region of New Zealand has undergone rapid and significant land use intensification over the last three decades resulting in a substantial increase of nitrate-nitrogen leached to the environment. In this article, we determined the nitrate grey water footprint of milk, which is the amount of water needed to dilute nitrogen leached past the root zone to meet different receiving water nitrate standards per milk production unit. Our analysis revealed the nitrate grey water footprint for Canterbury ranged from 433 to 11,110 litres of water per litre of milk, depending on the water standards applied. This footprint is higher than many estimates for global milk production, and reveals that footprints are very dependent on inputs included in the analyses and on the water quality standards applied to the receiving water. The extensive dairy farming in Canterbury is leading to significant pollution of the region’s groundwater, much of which is used for drinking water. Dairy farming at this intensity is unsustainable and if not reduced could pose a significant risk to human health and the market perception of the sustainability of the New Zealand dairy industry and its products.

Effects of inflow, infiltration, and exfiltration on water footprint increase of a sewer system: A case study of Tehran

• Total water footprint of inflow, infiltration, and exfiltration is calculated. • Inflow and infiltration are major sources of blue water footprint in the sewer system. • Most of the water footprint in the system is due to the released untreated wastewater. • Energy consumption has a small proportion of water footprint in the sewer system. • Treating no wastewater can greatly increase the grey water footprint of the system. This study investigates the effect of inflow, infiltration, and exfiltration (I&I&E) on the water footprint increase of a sewer system. After separating the dry and wet-weather periods, inflow and infiltration are considered on a daily basis of the study period. By assuming an exfiltration rate, all components of the wastewater flow entering the sewer network and reaching the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) are calculated. Inflow and infiltration as two freshwater resources which leave the urban area are the major sources of the blue water footprint. Sewer exfiltration is a source of groundwater pollution and causes grey water footprint. Moreover, I&I&E result in different volumes of treated and untreated wastewater arriving water bodies and more electricity consumption in the WWTP. These items have their own grey and blue water footprints that are considered as indirect effects of I&I&E. The results show an aggregate 158.674 million cubic metre per year of the blue and grey water footprint increase in the Tehran sewerage system due to the I&I&E. More than 85% of this volume consists of the grey water footprint which is mostly because of the untreated wastewater released into the environment.

Grey water footprint assessment of domestic wastewater in Guangdong section of the Dongjiang River Basin

Water pollution in river basins has become one of the main factors in restricting regional social-economic development. Water footprint assessment at river basin level is a hot issue in the research on water for sustainable development. In this study, the grey water footprint method was introduced for domestic wastewater assessment. The approach can effectively reflect the impact of water pollution on the amount of available water resources by evaluating the degree of water pollution from the perspective of water quantity. In order to verify the approach, the region of Guangdong section of the Dongjiang River Basin (GD-DRB) was selected as a case. Based on multiple pollutants (i.e., CODCr, NH3-N, BOD5 and TP), grey water footprint of the river basin was calculated. The results showed that the grey water footprint of domestic water in the urban area of the region was higher than that in the rural area. The total amount of grey water footprint in the region was 28.41 billion m3. The main pollutants in the region were phosphorus and organic compounds.

Evaluation of non-point source pollution based on grey water footprint method: A case study in the urban agglomeration of Shenzhen, Dongguan and Huizhou

Based on a grey water footprint method, NPS pollution in the urban agglomeration of Shenzhen, Dongguan and Huizhou was evaluated in this research. The results showed that the NPS pollution level in this urban agglomeration decreased from 1995 to 2019. The grey water footprint of NPS pollution in the cities of Shenzhen, Dongguan and Huizhou had similar variation characteristic, which showed a trend of first increasing, then decreasing, and finally increasing during the research period. The largest source of grey water footprint of NPS pollution was land use, followed by livestock and poultry breeding. The water pollution level of NPS pollution was highest in Shenzhen and lowest in Huizhou, which was in the same order as gross domestic product (GDP) in this agglomeration. Thus, city governments should attach more importance to prevention and control of NPS pollution in the process of economic development, especially for land use source.

Study on the Matching Method of Agricultural Water and Land Resources from the Perspective of Total Water Footprint

The matching status of agricultural water and land resources is a prerequisite for grain production. The influence of gray water footprint has not been paid attention to in the study of agricultural water and land resources matching based on water footprint. To measure the matching status of agricultural water and land resources more comprehensively, the total water footprint (including blue, green and gray water footprint) and the cultivated land area was taken as the characterization parameters of water and land resources, respectively. The Gini coefficient model, and the agricultural water and land resources matching coefficient model were constructed to calculate the matching degree of agricultural water and land resources in a cold region (Heilongjiang Province) of China. Based on the amount of agricultural water consumption, the equivalent coefficient model was used to evaluate the degree of agricultural water and land resources shortage or to be developed. The result of agricultural water and land resources matching coefficient model showed that the matching degree of agricultural water and land resources in Heilongjiang Province is getting better year by year, which is consistent with the calculations determined from the Gini coefficient. The result of the equivalent coefficient method based on agricultural water consumption was consistent with the result of the Gini coefficient method based on total water footprint, which is verified that it is scientific and reasonable to take the total water footprint as the characterization parameter of water resource. The findings may provide implications for the spatial optimal allocation of regional agricultural water and land resources.

Environmental and energy implications of coal-based alternative vehicle fuel pathway from the life cycle perspective.

Coal-based fuels are effective alternative vehicle fuels in coal-rich countries, but whether it is beneficial to the environment and carbon neutrality has always been a concern. This study evaluates the energy efficiency, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, water footprint (WF), and environmental impact of coal-based diesel, coal-based synthetic natural gas, coal-based hydrogen, and coal-based electricity pathways from the life cycle perspective. Furthermore, scenario analysis predicts the impact of coal-rich countries on energy and emissions by adjusting vehicle fuel ratio. The results show that the coal-based diesel fuel pathway has lower energy efficiency and emits more GHGs. And GHGs are concentrated in fuel production stage. In terms of WF, the coal-based electricity pathway has the greatest benefits, which gray WF is dominant. From environmental impact perspective, a single vehicle fuel pathway cannot satisfy all impact categories. But the coal-based electricity pathway has the lowest value for the end-point environmental impact categories. Scenario analysis shows that the USA, India, and the European Union can significantly save energy and water resources and reduce GHG emissions with the increase in the proportion of alternative fuel vehicle in 2030. However, even a complete ban on the use of conventional gasoline vehicle in Norway will not reduce water consumption.

Water Footprint of the Water Cycle of Gran Canaria and Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain)

When it comes to exploiting natural resources, islands have limitations due to the quantity of these resources and the potential for harm to the ecosystem if exploitation is not done in a sustainable manner. This article presents a study of the water footprint of the different drinking water collection facilities and wastewater treatment facilities in the Canary Islands, in order to determine the blue, green, and grey water footprints in each case. The results show high percentages of drinking water losses, which raises the blue water footprint of the Canary Islands archipelago. The grey water footprint was studied in terms of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5). The green water footprint was not considered because it is a dimension of the water footprint mainly calculated for agricultural crops. Of the facilities studied, the wells for extraction of drinking water from the aquifer and the distribution network have the largest blue water footprint for the years under study (2019 and 2020). Only the wastewater treatment plants have a gray water footprint in this study, with values between 79,000 and 108,000 m3 per year. As a general conclusion, the most important factor in reducing the water footprint of the water cycle in the Canary Islands is optimization of the water resource, improving existing infrastructures to minimize losses, and implementing a greater circular economy that reuses water on a regular basis.

Role of wastewater treatment plants in pollution reduction - evaluated by grey water footprint indicator

The study assesses the pollution discharged from 251 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) throughout the Odra river basin in the Czech Republic. The development of pollution production over a period of 15 years (2004–2018) together with a number of WWTPs in the Odra river basin were analyzed. The grey water footprint (GWF) of discharged pollution was determined both in terms of individual size categories of WWTPs and in terms of the parameter that most affects the level of pollution. The share of the small WWTPs size categories (up to 2,000 PE) on the total GWF value of discharged pollution is only 8%, although these are the most numerous. The share of the WWTPs of the size category > 10,000 PE on the total GWF value of discharged pollution is 82%. Total phosphorus (at large WWTPs) and ammonium nitrogen (at small WWTPs) were identified as the key pollutants that most determine the value of the grey water footprint of discharged pollution.

Spatio-temporal variability and trend of water footprints in the upper Awash basin, central Ethiopia

The water resources in the upper Awash basin in central Ethiopia are intensively utilized by the densely populated urban centers and extensive agricultural activities in the wide rift plains surrounding the major cities. The green, blue, grey and total water footprints of major crops dominantly cultivated in the sub-basin (teff, maize, sorghum and sugar cane) are characterized. The water footprints were analyzed for the period 2000 to 2010 using climatic as well as soil and crop yield data from the Debrezeit, Wonji, Melkassa and Metehara stations. The temporal and spatial variations of total water footprints (TWFs) in the basin were analyzed and mapped. The temporal trends of the Water Footprints (WFs) are interpreted using Mann-Kendall and Sen’s slope tests. The crop production in the sub-basin mainly depends on green water consumption. Teff and sorghum crops in the climatically similar Debrezeit and Melkassa areas had relatively higher TWFs (4205 m3/ton and 2539 m3/ton, respectively) compared to maize. Blue water requirement to supplement rainfed agriculture decreases from Metehara, Melkassa, Wonji to Debrezeit in that order. The TWF of irrigated sugarcane (117–212 m3/ton) is less than those of rainfed crops such as maize which has a minimum TWF of 1752 m3/ton. The spatial and temporal variations in WFs in the sub-basin are determined by both climatic (effective rainfall, evapotranspiration, length of wet spell and length of growing period) and non-climatic parameters (such as fertilizer consumption, soil types, crop yields and agricultural management practices). Our results suggest cultivating less water-intensive, high-yield crops can significantly decrease the TWFs in the sub-basin. The results could be used to develop well-informed regional and national freshwater resource management policies. More broadly, our novel approach of characterizing WFs at the sub-basin scale using limited amount of locally measured data sets could be a useful tool in other parts of the world where locally measured data sets are scarce.

Improved Gray Water Footprint Calculation and Assessment Method for Polyester Fabric Production

Gray water footprint has been widely used as an indicator to quantify the water environmental impact of textile products. Traditionally, gray water footprint values are determined by the largest gray water footprint value of the typical water pollutant. The performances of other critical compounds that coexist in wastewater are disregarded. To mitigate these shortcomings associated with gray water footprint accounting and assessment, an improved gray water footprint calculation and assessment framework is proposed in this study. The diffusion and attenuation process of pollutants in rivers was considered for the comprehensive accounting and evaluation of the impacts caused by various pollutants in discharged wastewater. Polyester fabric production was used to illustrate the application of the improved gray water footprint calculation and assessment method. The results revealed that chemical oxygen demand caused the most severe water eutrophication impact and antimony caused the most severe water ecotoxicity impact. The comprehensive evaluation of improved gray water footprint indicated that alkali peeling process caused the largest water environmental impact during polyester fabric production.

Understanding China's industrialization driven water pollution stress in 2002–2015—A multi-pollutant based net gray water footprint analysis

China produces a large amount of industrial effluent with multiple pollutants contained, along with a flourishing economy. This study aims to examine the dynamics between China's industrialization and accompanying environmental pressure based on the gray water footprint (GWF) concept. A newly proposed net GWF (NetGWF) and the decoupling index (DI) are applied to evaluate China's industrial activities during 2002–2015 in different modes considering typical, all, and individual pollutants. The NetGWF dynamics are further quantitatively decomposed into 17 effects of not only commonly assessed drivers but also industrial fixed capital formation, inventory variation, and import, using an advanced dynamic decomposition analysis approach. Results show NetGWF is an effective indicator measuring domestic water pollution stress from industrialization, with NetGWF-AllPlt (estimated using all pollutants) validated to be more reliable and sensitive than NetGWF-COD&NH3N (estimated using Chemical oxygen demand and Ammonia nitrogen). An overall decoupling between China's industrialization and wastewater pollution is identified with most of DIs less than 1.0 caused mainly by decreased (by around 40%) industrial NetGWFs for 2002–2015. Industrial fixed capital formation and export have caused main components of China's industrial GWF, with proportions of 37.3% and 30.8%, respectively, followed by urban household consumption (16.8%). Volatile phenol, Petroleum, and Ammonia nitrogen are recognized as three decisive contaminants to the industrial NetGWFs. Technological development is the dominant contributor (−50%) to decreasing China's industrial NetGWFs, while fixed capital formation (18%) and export (16%) are principal drivers increasing the NetGWFs. Based on these, we expect to provide informative findings for building a pollution-decoupled industrialization.

Study on Regional Differences and Convergence of Green Development Efficiency of the Chemical Industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt Based on Grey Water Footprint.

Grey water footprint is included in the green development efficiency evaluation index system of the chemical industry. From 2002 to 2016, the super efficiency Slack Based Measure (SBM) model was used to measure the green development efficiency of the chemical industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt. Dagum Gini coefficient and its decomposition method were used to decompose the regional differences of green development efficiency of the chemical industry in the Economic Belt, and the coefficient of variation method and panel data regression model were used to test the convergence characteristics. The following results were obtained. (1) The total grey water footprint of the chemical industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt showed a fluctuating downward trend from 2002 to 2016. (2) The green development efficiency of the chemical industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt was significantly improved, and the spatial differentiation law of gradient decline in the upper, middle, and lower reaches of the Economic Belt was shown. (3) The regional difference of green development efficiency of the chemical industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt initially showed an expanding trend and then a narrowing trend. Regional differences in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River increased while those in the middle reaches first increased and then decreased, whereas those in the lower reaches decreased significantly. The variance in green development efficiency of the chemical industry is the main cause of regional differences. (4) From 2012 to 2016, the Yangtze River Economic Belt had obvious convergence in its whole region, middle reaches, and lower reaches and an inconspicuous convergence in the upstream area. Regional difference of green development efficiency of the chemical industry in the Economic Belt was the combined effect of the results of environmental regulation, industrial structure, foreign investment intensity, and scientific and technological advancements. Our results have high theoretical reference values and practical guiding significance for implementing the green efficiency promotion strategy of the chemical industry in Yangtze River Economic Belt by region and classification.

Sustainability of the Water Footprint of Various Soil Types on Oil Palm Plantations

There are significant studies that have quantified oil palm water footprint as an indicator of environmental sustainability but an estimation of water footprint under varying soil types furthermore is still limited. The objectives of the study were to estimate whether annual variations of soil type and yields significantly effects for the oil palm water footprint. The data from three types of soil (spodosol, inceptisol, ultisol) were collected from an oil palm plantation in Pundu village, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. To perform the water footprint analysis we utilize water balance accounting equations via application Cropwat 8.0. From that, we determine the crop irrigation scheduling to compute the blue, green, and grey water footprint of oil palm fresh fruit bunch in the area. Our analysis found that the actual evapotranspiration of spodosol and inceptisol have the same value: 1242 mm/year whilst ultisol is 1239 mm/year. The total water footprint of oil palm varied considerably with the largest value being 1310.04 m3/ton for ultisol. The actual evapotranspiration of spodosol and inceptisol have the same value of 1242 mm/year whilst ultisol is 1239 mm/year. The higher production resulted in a lower water footprint and vice versa. Moreover, the total water footprint from ultisol soil type has the highest value due to the lowest yields. The difference in evapotranspiration value resulted in the insignificant value of total water footprint. The lower water availability, the lower water use, and the higher actual irrigation requirement in oil palm plantation yet showed the unnotable impact on water footprint in different soil types for the oil palm plantation.

Strategies to Reduce Crop Water Footprint in Intensive Wheat-Maize Rotations in North China Plain

The intensive use of groundwater and nitrogen fertilizer has led to serious negative impacts on the environment of the North China Plain (NCP). Water footprint is an emerging approach to assess the consumptive water use and the environmental impacts on winter wheat-summer maize systems. A seven-year rotation experiment was conducted to collect data on wheat and maize growth response to nitrogen rates and irrigation schedules and to explore how the water footprint was affected, using DSSAT 4.6 Wheat and Maize crop models. Results showed that the increase in farm inputs contributed greatly to the increase in water footprint, primarily through the grey water footprint. The water footprints of maize and wheat were more sensitive to the nitrogen rate and irrigation, respectively. An irrigation of 160 mm produced a minimum total water footprint and higher yield for wheat. The grey water footprint of maize increased linearly when the nitrogen rate applied to maize exceeded 60 kg ha−1. Water-saving irrigation with 300 kg ha−1 of nitrogen can maintain a higher grain yield and have little impact on the environment. The approach used and the results can help to develop management strategies to maintain high yields while minimizing the water footprint in NCP.

Explaining water security indicators using hydrologic and agricultural systems models

Water security plays an important role in socio-economic development, ecosystem management, and environmental sustainability. Over the last four decades, water security assessment has attracted much political and economic attention. An improved understanding of the relationships between water demand and supply is needed to mitigate the impacts of diminishing water resources. This study provides an overview of water security assessment by focusing on the various water security indicators and the concept of water footprint (blue, green, and grey water). The water security indicators based on the water footprint concept is currently receiving more attention because it accounts for the return flow from the total water withdrawn from a watershed. We also investigate the application of different physically-based hydrological models, such as Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC), on water security assessment at a regional to continental scale. However, hydrological/agricultural system models cannot quantify evapotranspiration from irrigation and rainwater separately. Therefore, independent quantification of blue and green water footprint from an irrigated field is challenging. For illustration purposes, we apply the fully distributed Agricultural Ecosystems Services (AgES) model in the Big Dry Creek Watershed (BDCW), an intensively managed and irrigated watershed located in semiarid Colorado. The results indicate that the blue water footprint is higher than the green water footprint in the watershed. In addition, the spatial distribution of grey water footprint is highly correlated with the amount of fertilizer application. The variation of grey water footprint among the irrigated fields is higher than blue and green water footprints. We conclude that applying a physically distributed model can provide useful insight into the impact of climate and anthropogenic activities on water security at different scales.

Sustainable agricultural water management incorporating inexact programming and salinization-related grey water footprint

In arid and semi-arid regions, improper irrigation activities not only exacerbate water shortages, but also lead to environmental pollution such as soil salinization that hinders crop growth and agricultural sustainability. There has been a lack of agricultural water management tools that could support agricultural water management with salinization-related grey water footprints being considered and associated uncertainties being addressed. In this study, salinization-related grey water footprints were measured through accounting for relationships among irrigation, soil salinity, evapotranspiration and crop yield, and then incorporated into an agricultural water management model for supporting environmentally sound irrigation decisions. Such an agricultural water management model was also characterized by a newly proposed generalized fuzzy interval fractional programming (GFIFP) method that could address ratio problems of two objectives and dual uncertainties. The developed methodology coupling the GFIFP method and grey water footprints was applied to an irrigation region in northwestern China where water scarcity and soil salinization hindered local development. Five credibility levels corresponding to decision makers' varied satisfactory degrees over water availability, and nine weight coefficients of possibility and necessity measures were considered. Results showed that, in order to reduce negative environmental impacts while increasing economic benefits, more irrigation water should be allocated to wheat and sunflower rather than corn. When the credibility level is 0.5 and weight coefficient is 0.9, the system efficiency would be the highest. Compared to the benchmark year of 2018, this scenario would generate [0.330, 6.647] billion yuan more benefits and [16.0, 133.9] million m3 less grey water footprints. Compared to three conventional approaches, GFIFP could provide decisions with more flexibility and less environmental impacts. The developed approach could also be applied to agricultural water management problems in other areas aiming at reducing grey water footprints and enhancing environmental benefits under uncertainty.

An approach to quantifying the grey water footprint of agricultural productions in basins with impaired environment

Grey water footprint (GWF) is an indicator that converts the pollution loads to the equivalent freshwater volume in water footprint (WF) assessment. The conventional application of GWF is to account the embedded water required for the assimilation of pollution loads discharged by production processes. However, this research highlights a deficiency in GWF accounting and proposes an integrated methodology to reinforce GWF to consider the regional environmental concerns in the WF of agricultural productions. This methodology has three main consecutive steps. First, the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) is used for basin simulation. Second, the WFs of agricultural productions are assessed by the modeling outcomes and according to the conventional approach of GWF accounting. In the third step, an amendment is introduced in WF assessment for accounting the embedded freshwater required for environmental enhancement. This amendment develops multiple-pollutant GWF assessment and increases the WFs of agricultural productions in environmentally impaired basins. This approach is verified in Zrebar Lake basin where farmlands are the main non-point sources and the lake experiences eutrophication. Here, the average WFs of rain-fed and irrigated crops are increased 8.9% and 5.8%, respectively by the developed methodology. In addition, the average ratio of GWF to WF of crops grows from 1.3% to 7.6% and the water pollution level increases more than 5.3 times in basin for WF sustainability assessment. This enhancement in the quantification of GWF is mainly due to the fact that the majority of the GWF of crops in the study area is related to nitrogen pollution loads, while phosphorous reduction is more critical for eutrophication control. Thus, this approach enables the multiple-pollutant GWF to consider the impacts of both pollution loads and ecological impairment in the WF of products. This perspective can promote GWF as an environmental indicator and extend its application for decision-making.

Assessing sustainable water utilization from a holistic view: A case study of Guangdong, China

Sustainable water utilization is the basis of sustainable development and is crucial to the realization of UN sustainable development goals. It is necessary to assess the progress of sustainable water utilization using a comprehensive framework concerning both water quantity and quality. Our work constructed a framework WRWGF (Water Resource-Withdrawal-GDP-Footprint) articulating water quantity with water quality based on grey water footprint (GWF), and investigated the sustainable water utilization of cities in China's largest economic province——Guangdong which suffers from severe water pollution. Findings showed that the GWF of Guangdong decreased from 156.46 to 133.72 Gm3/y with fluctuation from 2008 to 2018, and the GWFs of cities presented higher in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) urban agglomeration, as well as the higher level of grey water stress. Sustainable water utilization of most cities showed climbing trends with fluctuation, and provincial sustainable water utilization achieved great improvement after 2015 driven by stricter water regulations. Wastewater disposal rate was the major driver of sustainable water utilization in most cities. The GWF indicator should be incorporated into current water management focusing on mitigating water shortage and pollution that tailored to local conditions based on development levels, contributing to the overall improvement in sustainable water utilization across Guangdong. The study proposed an integrated framework to assess the sustainable water utilization from a holistic view, aiming at providing a scientific basis for water management towards regional sustainability.

Analysis of Agricultural Eco-Efficiency and Influencing Factors in Henan Province

In order to improve the agricultural eco-efficiency and promote the sustainable development of agriculture in Henan Province, China, based on the footprint theory, the super-efficiency SBM model is used to scientifically calculate and analyze the agricultural eco-efficiency in Henan Province. On this basis, the influencing factors of agricultural eco-efficiency in Henan Province are quantitatively analyzed by using the grey incidence analysis model. The results show that unilaterally considering one of grey water footprints and carbon footprints will overestimate or underestimate the agricultural eco-efficiency of Henan Province in different degrees in different time periods, and the agricultural eco-efficiency obtained by comprehensively considering grey water footprint and carbon footprint (GWCAEE) is more in line with the reality of agricultural development in Henan Province. In 2000-2004, GWCAEE in Henan Province was better. During 2005-2014, GWCAEE in Henan Province showed a fluctuating decline and continued to be in an inefficient state. From 2015 to 2019, GWCAEE of Henan Province gradually increased, and it became effective in 2019. In recent years, GWCAEE has developed well. Through the grey incidence analysis between 12 influencing factors including endogenous factors and exogenous factors and GWCAEE, it is found that the six leading factors of GWCAEE in Henan Province are agricultural structure, financial input for agriculture, number of agricultural employees, crop sown area, consumption of chemical pesticide, consumption of agricultural diesel oil. According to the above research conclusions, suggestions for improving agricultural eco-efficiency in Henan Province are put forward.

Water Footprints, Intra‐National Virtual Water Flows, and Associated Sustainability Related to Pork Production and Consumption: A Case for China

AbstractGrowth in water consumption with intensified virtual water (VW) flows from increased production and consumption of both meat and feed crops threatens the sustainability of water resources in water‐scarce countries and export regions. However, a sustainability assessment of both water footprints (WFs) and VW flows related to animal products at a subnational scale is lacking. Here we estimate direct and indirect WFs as well as the inter‐provincial VW flows associated with pork production and consumption in China for the years 2008 and 2017. The contributions of feed crop production and consumption were identified. Both life cycle assessment and WF network frameworks were applied to evaluate the sustainability of blue WF and VW flows. Results show that the national annual consumptive (green‐blue) WF and degradative (gray) WF of pork production increased by 8.7% and 15.8%, respectively. More than 80% of the blue WF in pork production was unsustainable. By 2017, 62% of the unsustainable blue WF and 64% of the water scarcity footprints of pork production in the south resulted from consuming the feed crops from the north. This analysis highlights the importance and provides feasible approaches to uncover remote geographical effects on regional water scarcities from different steps in the value chains of livestock products.