Energy-water security challenge: Impact of energy production on water sustainable developments in Northwest China in 2017 and 2030

Abstract

Energy consumption has gradually become an important factor affecting the sustainable use of regional water resources, especially in areas with abundant energy but scarce water. In this research, the water consumption for energy production in arid Northwest China (NWC) in 2017 and 2030 was evaluated, and the virtual water (VW) transfer embodied in the energy trade was also calculated based on a large amount of data collected from multiple sources. The results showed that the energy-related water consumption in NWC in 2017 was 2.6 billion m3, accounting for approximately 3.4% of the total regional water consumption and 61.8% of the total regional industrial water consumption. This value is projected to reach 8.6 billion m3 in 2030 under a normal water consumption scenario (BAU scenario), and 5.4 and 3.6 billion m3 under a regular water-saving scenario (RWS scenario) and enhanced water-saving scenario (EWS scenario), respectively. In 2017, except for Qinghai and Gansu, the other province in the study area was a VW exporter and the total VW output volume was 710.3 million m3, accounting for 26.9% of the total water consumption for energy production, this ratio will reach approximately 60% in 2030 due to the expansion of energy industry. In addition, based on our research, the available water in four provinces cannot meet the future energy requirements under EWS scenario owing to the water shortage, however, different energy development strategies need to be selected faced with the different types of water shortage condition. This study also proposed some countermeasures to ensure the coordinated development of regional water and energy.