AMSTERDAM, HONG KONG, OAKLAND, Calif., February 4, 2026 /3BL/ – Cascale and Worldly today released Navigating Global Water Regulation: Implications for the Textile and Consumer Goods Sector, examining how intensifying water scarcity and tightening regulation are reshaping the operating environment for the apparel, textile, and wider consumer goods sector.
The analysis maps evolving water policy across key production regions in Asia, the European Union, and the United States. It connects regulatory developments to operational, financial, and reputational risks, and outlines how companies can strengthen resilience as water becomes a strategic business concern alongside climate and supply chain due diligence.
With the global apparel and textile industry consuming an estimated 93 billion cubic meters of water annually and contributing roughly 20 percent of global industrial wastewater, water regulation is accelerating in regions already facing acute stress. Governments are responding with stricter controls on water use, wastewater discharge, and pollution, particularly in major manufacturing hubs.
The report highlights significant regulatory momentum in China and Vietnam, continued but uneven enforcement across other Asian production countries, expanding disclosure requirements in the European Union, and regulatory uncertainty in the United States. Together, these trends underscore the need for companies to elevate water risk from a site-level issue to a governance and strategy priority.
“Preserving our planet’s freshwater supplies is a top priority — water is life. Across the globe, legislators are responding by introducing new regulations, and water is quickly becoming a defining constraint on how and where the industry can operate,” said Elisabeth von Reitzenstein, senior director of policy and public affairs at Cascale. “This analysis is designed to help companies move beyond reacting to individual laws and instead understand the bigger picture. When water risk is integrated into sourcing, governance, and performance management, it becomes possible to protect both business continuity and local communities.”
The report also outlines practical actions companies can take now, including mapping facilities in water-stressed basins, validating wastewater compliance, strengthening supplier data collection, and embedding water considerations into sourcing and contingency planning. These steps are increasingly critical as regulation shifts from focusing on efficiency alone toward source sustainability and foundational environmental performance.
“Water policy provides essential direction for where supply chain action matters most,” said JR Siegel, vice president of sustainability at Worldly. “Leading companies rely on Worldly’s standardized, decision-grade data to prioritize action at the facility level—strengthening risk management, investment decisions, and supply chain resilience ahead of disruption.”
Key Takeaways
- Water regulation is accelerating globally. Governments are strengthening controls on water use, wastewater discharge, and pollution, particularly in water-stressed production regions.
- Risk exposure is uneven but growing. Major apparel and textile hubs in Asia face tightening regulation and enforcement, while EU disclosure requirements expand and U.S. policy remains uncertain.
- Water is now a strategic business issue. Companies are moving from treating water as a site-level concern to integrating it into governance, sourcing, and risk management decisions.
- Data and standardization matter. Visibility into water use, wastewater management, and basin-level risk is essential to manage compliance, protect operations, and maintain credibility.
- Early action builds resilience. Companies that invest now in efficient, compliant, and transparent water management are better positioned as scarcity and regulation intensify.
The publication reflects Cascale and Worldly’s shared commitment to supporting the industry with credible, actionable insight. Cascale’s Higg Index tools, developed in collaboration with Worldly, in addition to Worldly’s comprehensive data and analytics platform, help connect evolving regulation to measurable performance improvement at scale.
As water scarcity intensifies and enforcement strengthens across regions, the report concludes that the cost of inaction — from production disruptions to reputational damage — is likely to exceed the investment required today. Proactive, verifiable water management is increasingly a strategic imperative for long-term resilience in the consumer goods industry.
ABOUT CASCALE
Cascale is the global nonprofit alliance empowering collaboration to drive equitable and restorative business practices in the consumer goods industry. Formerly known as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Cascale owns and develops the Higg Index, which is exclusively available on Worldly, the most comprehensive sustainability data and insights platform. Cascale unites over 300 retailers, brands, manufacturers, governments, academics, and NGO/nonprofit affiliates around the globe through one singular vision: To catalyze impact at scale and give back more than we take to the planet and its people.
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ABOUT WORLDLY
Worldly is the leading sustainability and supply chain intelligence platform for the consumer goods industry. The company empowers brands, retailers, and manufacturers to turn verified primary data into insight and action across complex global supply chains.
Trusted by a network of more than 40,000 companies across apparel, footwear, home furnishings, and sporting goods, Worldly provides visibility into environmental and social performance, including carbon, water, chemicals, and labor, at the product, facility, and value-chain levels.
Built on industry-recognized standards, including Cascale’s Higg Index, Worldly translates raw data into actionable intelligence that helps organizations reduce risk, meet evolving regulatory requirements, and drive measurable progress over time.
