Nuclear Desalination

(Originally posted on waterefficiency.net)

By Elizabeth Cutright
Editor
Water Efficiency

We’ve talked a lot about the connection between energy and water, but here’s another perspective courtesy of Telegraph UK. In a commentary posted in the Finance section, Commodities Editor Garry White discusses the possibility that switching to nuclear energy could help solve our water crisis. White points to the Middle East as an example of how countries like UAE (which will see it's electricity demand double by 2020) and Saudi Arabia (which is already planning to use nuclear power for 25% of its electricity needs) are looking to nuclear power as the best way to meet their future power demands. While it's true that nuclear energy will reduce dependence on fossil fuels, there is—as White points out—an added benefit: Nuclear reactors not only generate electricity, they can also desalinate water.
In fact, nuclear desalination is already being used successfully in Kazakhstan, where one nuclear reactor sits on the shore of the Caspian Sea. During that reactor's lifespan (1972–1999), it produced 135 MW of electricity and 80,000 cubic meters of potable water every day. And nuclear desalination is not confined to the middle east—Japan and India are both using nuclear reactors to desalinate water.
So what do you think? Desalination in general is energy intensive, so does pairing it up with nuclear power make it a more viable option? And although nuclear power reduces dependence on fossil fuels—and as a result contributes to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions—does that benefit outweigh the risks? And is this just a niche solution suitable for only certain hard-pressed environments (like the Middle East), or could nuclear desalination make sense for any coastal region?