System Mapping – Week 2

The big picture:

This paper talks about water and water infrastructure, and providing both potable water and
sanitation.

- If we think about the global water infrastructure, we start to realize how much energy
this all takes.
- Not only in the US but around the world, take an enourmous amount of energy.
- AND IF this ENERGY is all provided based on fossil fuels, then what we are really doing
with this water infrastructures is contributing to climate change.
- AND we don’t want to do that because CLIMATE CHANGE will continue to disrupt the
WATER cycle, which will probably lead to greater energy consumption and so forth.

- Global Water Demand (2nd presentation)

This paper will talk about the “water x energy” Nexus.

- 1 billion people lack adequate drinking water.

- 2 billion people lack adequate sanitation.

- By 2025,1/4 of all people could live in areas that face severe water shortages.

- And by 2050 could be half of the world.

So, when we start to think about water, you then say, you know…Water is not a problem if you
have enough energy…
- But of course, if you use a lot of fossil DERIVED ENERGY, THEN YOU HAVE A PROBLEM
CONTRIBUTING TO CLIMATE CHANGE.
- And the more you contribute to climage change, the more it changes water patterns
and water distribution, and the more energy that you have to put in to your water
infrastructure,
- And it just starts to go in a circle, and spin faster and faster.
If we put energy into 2 different prospectives,

------- ENERGY DEMANDS --------

1) AT A BIG SCALE…

 GLOBAL ENERGY (THIS IS A BIG PICTURE).

o the first big prospective, the Global Energy Use (Power = energy / time)
o 13,500 GW ( = 13.5 TW)  13.5 Terawatts.

- - in the US we use about 3340 GW (continuous) currently used . => 3.3 Terawatts,
- 600 GW generated as electricity of electrical power used,

 looking at the big picture…

- A typical nuclear power plan is about a gigawatt = (approximately 1 GW)

2) AT A SMALLER SCALE,

- - POWER CONSUMPTION BY PEOPLE

o 2000 CALORIES/ DAY (2000 Kcal/d, 8.4Mj/d).
o That is equivalent to 1 light bulb of 100 W, - and we through our waste
(defecating and urinating), our waste, per person, is equivalent to 25W (down
the drain).  which is the same amount of light as this old technology there
(fluorescent light).

ENERGY & THE WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

- Annual energy used for the water infrastructure

o 30 GW (USA), or 5-6% of all electricity generated

o The energy perspective for the water infrastructure, is that we use about 30
gigawatts for electrical power, for our water infrastructure in the US. AND half of
that has been estimated to be used for wastewater treatment and
 - Wastewater treatment:
o 15GW

o 0. kWh/m^3 (0.12 to 1-2 KWh/m^3).

- For Drinking water treatment

- The numbers are really small, but if you go to something .

GOAL OF MY RESEARCH: