How pumps play a role in the WATER-ENERGY NEXUS
03/05/2015
Water is life. It is essential to the production of electricity and other energy, to agriculture and industrialization, to comfort and progress. But in a world of climate change and population growth, a world in which natural and manmade disasters demand better, smarter and more sustainable technologies, the availability of water and energy will determine the future of life itself. Will there be enough?
As we face this monumental question, government regulators, industry leaders and citizens of the world are beginning to think differently. Energy and water systems have historically been developed, managed and regulated independently and solutions have been considered separately. Today, there is a growing understanding of the natural nexus between water and energy. To find sustainable solutions, we must start with the basics. We all know the price of a gallon of gas, and we track this cost daily. But what is a gallon of water worth? "Most people don't have a common tendency to place a value on water," Xylem President and CEO Patrick Decker said. "This is becoming more and more understandable by our policy and thought leaders around the world that some of the biggest demands on the environment in terms of energy production are the demands placed on water and the scarcity of water. "In many areas where oil is the most abundant, water is the most scarce. It is simply not going to be sustainable until we have as much of a focus and debate around the value of water—whether that be sources of clean water, the climate of the energy cycle or management of the wastewater." An integrated, strategic approach can guide technology research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D) to address regional water-energy issues and also make national and global impacts, according to a 2014 report from the Department of Energy ("The Water-Energy Nexus: Challenges and Opportunities"). The World Health Organization predicts that by 2050 two-thirds of the nearly 10 billion people on Earth will live in developed cities, which will create great pressure on global energy and water resources. In the Middle East, produced water from oil and gas operations wastes more than 73 million barrels per day. In regions characterized by unconventional production of oil, such as tight oil and oil sands, a single well can require up to 5 million gallons of water. "This is clearly not sustainable," Decker said. "We need resilience for water infrastructure. Water variability is resulting in a rising economic risk for communities around the world. Floods disrupt power plants, oil refineries and other critical energy infrastructure. Managing the movement of water around energy facilities during these times is crucial for maintaining resilience. In arid environments, there are some no-regret moves that can immediately be made, such as water reuse. These are common in the Middle East, Singapore, Australia and the U.S. Reuse can help close the gap between supply and demand."