Next Article in Journal
Research Status and Prospects of Automatic Leveling Technology for Orchard Machinery
Previous Article in Journal
Curing Sustainability Assessment in Concrete Pavements: A 20-Year Simulation-Based Analysis in Urban Road Contexts
Previous Article in Special Issue
Effect of the Replacement of Wheat Straw by Spent Mushroom Substrate in the Diet of Dairy Ewes during Late Lactation on Milk Production, Composition, Oxidation Stability and Udder Health
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
Sustainability
Volume 17
Issue 12
10.3390/su17125298
sustainability-logo
Submit to this Journal Review for this Journal Propose a Special Issue
► Article Menu

Article Menu

share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite
first_page
settings
Order Article Reprints
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Water Footprint Assessment of Beef and Dairy Cattle Production in the Regional Unit of Karditsa, Greece

by
Anthoula Dota
1,
Vassilios Dotas
2,*,
Dimitrios Gourdouvelis
2,
Lampros Hatzizisis
3,
George Symeon
4,
Dimitrios Galamatis
5 and
Nicolaos Theodossiou
1
1
Department of Hydraulics and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
2
Department of Animal Production, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
3
School of Agriculture, University of Ioannina, 47100 Arta, Greece
4
Research Institute of Animal Science, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 58100 Giannitsa, Greece
5
School of Animal Science, University of Thessaly, 41500 Larissa, Greece
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2025, 17(12), 5298; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125298 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 18 April 2025 / Revised: 4 June 2025 / Accepted: 5 June 2025 / Published: 8 June 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advancing Ruminant Nutrition for Sustainable Agriculture: Current Challenges and Future Perspectives)
Versions Notes

Abstract

One of the most important factors affecting water resources is livestock development. This study focuses on estimating the water demands of beef and dairy cattle breeding, as well as the corresponding products, in the Regional Unit of Karditsa (Greece), while simultaneously assessing the pollution caused by this activity in water bodies. The impacts are measured using the water footprint (WF) approach across its three dimensions (green, blue, and gray), considering the quantity of feed and water utilized by each animal type and the production system applied in the research area. For beef production, the intensive system shows a total WF of 90,535 m3/ton (gray 88%, green 9%, blue 3%), while the semi-intensive system totals 82,027 m3/ton (gray 84%, green 12%, blue 4%). For dairy cows, the total WF reaches 2750 m3/year/ton of milk (gray 81%, green 14%, blue 5%). Gray WF was estimated based on pollutant loads from livestock waste using concentration thresholds for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P), providing a clearer view of water quality degradation linked to livestock activities. These findings can guide regional directorates in addressing key water-related pressures from livestock production.
Keywords: water footprint; livestock water demands; beef and dairy cattle; case study application water footprint; livestock water demands; beef and dairy cattle; case study application

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Dota, A.; Dotas, V.; Gourdouvelis, D.; Hatzizisis, L.; Symeon, G.; Galamatis, D.; Theodossiou, N. Water Footprint Assessment of Beef and Dairy Cattle Production in the Regional Unit of Karditsa, Greece. Sustainability 2025, 17, 5298. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125298

AMA Style

Dota A, Dotas V, Gourdouvelis D, Hatzizisis L, Symeon G, Galamatis D, Theodossiou N. Water Footprint Assessment of Beef and Dairy Cattle Production in the Regional Unit of Karditsa, Greece. Sustainability. 2025; 17(12):5298. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125298

Chicago/Turabian Style

Dota, Anthoula, Vassilios Dotas, Dimitrios Gourdouvelis, Lampros Hatzizisis, George Symeon, Dimitrios Galamatis, and Nicolaos Theodossiou. 2025. "Water Footprint Assessment of Beef and Dairy Cattle Production in the Regional Unit of Karditsa, Greece" Sustainability 17, no. 12: 5298. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125298

APA Style

Dota, A., Dotas, V., Gourdouvelis, D., Hatzizisis, L., Symeon, G., Galamatis, D., & Theodossiou, N. (2025). Water Footprint Assessment of Beef and Dairy Cattle Production in the Regional Unit of Karditsa, Greece. Sustainability, 17(12), 5298. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125298

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Metrics

Article metric data becomes available approximately 24 hours after publication online.
Back to TopTop