During its first annual Water Stewardship Month, MillerCoors' 10 breweries and headquarters are engaging in partnerships and volunteer projects to promote responsible water use.

Among the projects on tap for this month are river and beach clean-up events, water quality testing projects, planting trees and foliage to help filter and retain groundwater, and other water education and improvement events.

"Water Stewardship Month represents two important commitments at MillerCoors: environmental sustainability and community investment," said Cornell Boggs, MillerCoors' Chief Ethics and Responsibility Officer. "We are committed to conserving water as a valuable resource, not only in our operations, but also in our communities."

Last year, the company achieved a water usage ratio of 4.1 barrels of water per barrel of beer, below the United Nations' established target for brewers of 5 barrels of water per barrel of beer.

MillerCoors is a joint venture of SABMiller and Molson Coors Brewing Company; SABMiller has been a leader in water footprinting and water sustainability efforts in recent years.

Last month, SABMiller and the World Wildlife Fund published Water Footprinting: Identifying & addressing water risks in the value chain, a report examining the process and results of measuring SABMiller's water footprint for two beer value chains.

SABMiller was also among the founding members of the CEO Water Mandate, launched in 2007 by six of the world's largest companies to highlight and focus action on the world's water crises.

Details about individual projects taking place this month as part of MillerCoors' Water Stewardship Month is available at CSRWire.com.