A water-intensive industry, whisky — the word is derived from the Gaelic for “water of life” — is inevitably sensitive to rising environmental pressures and legislative changes.

The E.U. adopted a legal framework a decade ago to manage, protect and restore water resources in Europe. The Water Framework Directive, which called for water charges to be levied to protect the environment, was initially fiercely opposed by the Scotch whisky industry on cost grounds. But in April 2006, Scottish legislation, tailored to take account of the industry’s needs, took effect as the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulation 2005. This is now the principal tool used by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to control water use at distilleries, including the abstraction of water, impoundment of water, discharge of effluent and river engineering.

A distiller now needs a license for abstraction — the removal of water from a surface or groundwater source — even if it is from its own private sources. It also has to pay the costs of regulation, in proportion to the amount of water that it extracts. Even the way that water is returned to the environment is now more controlled under the Europe-inspired regulation.

In December, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Scottish government published a river basin management plan, setting out a long-term program for achieving and maintaining good water quality. David Williamson of the Scotch Whisky Association, which represents 95 percent of the industry’s output, said the report had found that water bodies in most whisky-producing areas already met a “good status” level.

“We are committed to working to ensure that good record continues,” Mr. Williamson wrote in an e-mail message.

Energy efficiency is another concern. A year ago, the industry pledged to cut its use of fossil fuels by 80 percent over the next 40 years, estimating that more than 750,000 tons of carbon dioxide would be saved by 2050.

Andy Rosie, of the environment protection agency, said that under existing pollution control regulations, cooling water returned to the environment from distilleries is subject to licensing and temperature monitoring, on the basis of which the distilleries pay a so-called “subsistence” fee.