A Systematic Review of Social Sustainability Indicators for Water Use along the Agricultural Value Chain

Abstract

The concept of sustainable water use serves as an indicator of environmental, economic, and social pressure on freshwater resources globally; however, the social element of sustainability is not well researched within water-consumption studies. The objective of this paper is to consider the current state of the literature on social sustainability indicators for water use in agriculture, as well as to describe the social (people) element of sustainability and establish water use as an element of society. By combining viewpoints, systematic literature reviews address research topics with a strength that no single work can have. From 314 papers published between 2013 and 2023, 42 papers were eligible for the review. This work employed a mixed-methods approach that included a systematic review following the (PRISMA) framework, scientific mapping through VOSviewer software (version 1.6.19), thematic reviews, and a review of the grey literature retrieved from artificial intelligence and deep learning technologies. The findings indicate that social sustainability indicators are based on environmental indicators. There are no set standards for what to consider as a social indicator of water use or for how these indictors can be measured. Life-cycle assessment and water-footprint assessment frameworks have shown progress with indicators that capture the social value of water such as productivity-reducing externalities, equity, and jobs per cubic metre of water.