CIAO DATE: 08/2014
June 2012
A substantive dialogue has emerged in the United States under the rubric of “the energy and water nexus,” representing the deepening understanding of the circular relationship between water and energy. Both are essential building blocks of US economic and physical security, and interface with efforts to improve health and prosperity. On a national level, the criticality of this relationship to economic and public prosperity is often ignored, as energy and water impacts are largely specific to a watershed or a local surface water source. Simply put, energy security and the availability of water are both critical elements of US national security. Furthermore, ensuring adequate water supplies underpins the production of energy resources, which remains a major driver of the US economy.
This report builds on the Council’s analysis in “Energy for Water and Water for Energy” which examines the power production connection to the nexus and looks at the nexus from the fuels perspective. It examines the drivers behind the looming crisis, namely, the US energy portfolio, the water needs of these energy sources, and water scarcity realities. For each of the primary and transportation fuels-conventional oil and gas, unconventional oil and gas, biofuels, hydro fuels, geothermal fluids, coal and uranium-the report examines their role, how water is used in extraction and processing and what impacts these operations have on water quantity and quality.
Resource link: Fueling America and the Energy Water Nexus [PDF] - 3.1M