Potentially Crippling Cycle
We need clean water for life
- To move water from one place to another takes energy.
- To desalinate water to increase the supply of fresh water takes energy.
- To purify used water takes energy.
We need energy to lead our current lives
- To generate energy via a coal, natural gas, or nuclear power plan requires significant amounts of water to cool the plant and putting that water back is environmentally questionable.
- To generate energy via biofuels requires water to grow the crops.
This is already a problem in Georgia, not a place you usually think of as dry, but one with a sufficient drought that it is squabbling with nearby states over who gets access to the water to cool the nuclear power plants that supply energy to their growing populations. On the other hand, San Diego is trying to build a desalination plant, but the power supply may be too thin.
The dilemma that we need energy to increase the supply of clean water and water to increase the supply of energy is discussed in more detail in Dr. Michael Webber‘s article in Scientific American.
What to Do About It
There are a series of technological developments and choices that can be made. Ones we already know about include
- using more expensive air cooling systems in thermal power plants
- improving membrane technology in desalination facilities
- using recycled water, at least for agriculture, but full “toilet to tap” is in place in Singapore
- increasing the use of solar water heaters and other dry renewable energy systems
But the most important change that Dr. Webber proposes is to raise the awareness of the systemic nature of the problem and develop methods to effectively confront it. He suggests highlighting the importance of water by creating a federal bureau parallel to the Department of Energy. Then the two departments would collaborate to develop plans for integrated policy making at that national level that would also serve as models for the local governments that currently hold authority over water usage.
What else can we add?
