Establishing a quantification process for nexus repercussions to mitigate environmental impacts in a water-energy interdependency network

Abstract

Bioenergy plays a pivotal role in replacing fossil fuels, limiting carbon emissions, and supporting the transformation of low-carbon societies. However, bioenergy crop production requires irrigation and the presence of specific soil and weather conditions, resulting in certain environmental impacts due to uneven resource allocation and depletion. Nexus repercussions occur when activities in an individual sector are mismanaged and impact other nexus sectors. This study applies a quantitative nexus approach to quantify, clarify, manage, and mitigate the repercussions and interlinkages between the water, energy, and land sectors. An assessment process is established to locate cultivable idle land, evaluate water availability, and estimate additional energy consumption. Districts are categorized into three groups based on their bioethanol capacity and water availability and are assigned development priorities. Undesirably, many districts that possess the most extensive suitable idle land are projected to face water challenges, so nexus repercussion analysis is applied to develop mitigation strategies, restrain intersystem impact dissemination effects, and sufficiently utilize their capacities. The range of expected mitigation achievement points for these districts varies from 8 million m3 to 66 million m3. Some districts can reach positive water availability and achieve a mitigation ratio higher than 50%. Districts are able to eliminate nexus repercussions from energy consumption and effectively reduce the pressures of water shortages. This study can help policymakers comprehend the limitations of regional water-energy interdependency networks (WEINs) and help them govern nexus repercussions at a manageable level, avoid runaway dissemination occurrences, and strengthen the resilience of WEINs.