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Energy for Water Management and Production. John J. Easton, Jr. Vice President of International Programs Edison Electric Institute Bi-Regional WEC Forum Mexico City, Mexico November 3, 2008. The Energy – Water Connection.
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Energy for Water Management and Production John J. Easton, Jr. Vice President of International Programs Edison Electric Institute Bi-Regional WEC Forum Mexico City, Mexico November 3, 2008
The Energy – Water Connection • The electric industry is the second largest user of water in the United States • Production from fossil fuels and nuclear energy uses 190,000 million gallons of water daily, accounting for 39% of all freshwater withdrawn nationwide • Each kWh generated from coal uses 25 gallons of water • Approximately 80% municipal water processing and distribution costs are for electricity • Increased electricity production and usage may lead to higher levels of GHG, which may impact availability of water to producers in certain regions Source: Sandia National Laboratories, EPRI
Energy Needs of Water Services • Energy is required to: • lift water from depth in an aquifer • pump water in pipes • treat waste water • desalinate brackish or sea water • Reverse Osmosis • Distillation • Globally, commercial energy consumed for delivering water is more than 26 quads, 7 percent of total world consumption • A considerable amount of water is also delivered by utilization of human energy – e.g., use of treadle pumps and water transport by women and children Source: Dr. Alan Hoffman, US Dept of Energy
Water-Energy Use in California: An Interesting Example • Energy demand associated with water use in CA is high for three reasons: • most of demand is located at considerable distance from source • water is heavy and moving it is energy intensive • water used for consumption must be treated, another energy intensive process • Annual water consumption is over 40 million acre-feet (one acre-foot = 326,000 gallons) • Energy required annually to pump and treat water exceeds 15,000 GWh, approximately 6.5% of total electricity used in the state per year Source: Dr. Alan Hoffman, US Dept of Energy
Innovations • Minimize the impact of energy production on water quality and availability • Reduce the energy required to treat, pump and distribute water, including improvements in wastewater treatment processes and irrigation technology • Treating and reusing “non-potable process (“gray”) water in power production • Accessing currently unused water sources such as saline aquifiers • Delivering water and energy more efficiently to prevent losses
Factors Increasing Public Supply/Treatment Energy Consumption • Age of water delivery system • Restrictions on water consumption may increase unit electricity consumption; economies of scale may be lost • Requirements for improved treatment • Advanced wastewater treatment results in 3 times the electricity use of a conventional trickling filter approach Source: EPRI