Interdependency

(Originally posted on waterefficiency.net)

By Elizabeth Cutright
Editor
Water Efficiency


When you run that tap or flush that toilet, you may be able to estimate how many gallons you’re using, but how many kilowatts are going down the drain? The question is not far-fetched when you consider that, by most estimates, 3% of the nation’s energy resources are tied up to water. And that 3% is based on a narrow focus: the water-use cycle of collection, treatment, and delivery. When the water cycle is adjusted to include consumer usage, you get a total energy demand amount of almost 20%. And that’s not even counting agriculture, which—in a state like California—accounts for up 75% of total water usage, thereby directly and significantly impacting the state’s energy consumption.
The complicated relationship between energy and water does not stop at supply and demand. In a cruel ying-yang tug or war, water and energy push and pull each other in a never-ending cycle of supply and demand: Water delivery systems result in greenhouse gas emissions, which in turn can aggravate already fragile environments and disrupt local water supplies. Decreasing water supplies require more extensive water collection and distribution systems, thereby exponentially increasing energy usage.
Global climate change is an important player, both as an influence on water supply, and as a byproduct of water treatment and delivery. In return, as recent scientific studies continue to show, climate change is responsible for the disruption of water supplies across the globe.
While all water conservation efforts should be applauded, it’s not enough to throw in a couple of low-flow toilets and call it a day. What we need is a broader effort that focuses on the interdependency of all our resources. As I’ve said before, any discussion of climate change, sustainability, or “going green” must include water: our diminishing supply, our increasing demands, and the impact our water needs has on the environment, and vice versa. Water efficiency must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with energy efficiency in the national dialogue.