Value intensity of water used for electrical energy generation in the Western U.S.; An application of embedded resource accounting

Abstract

This study evaluates the water intensity of thermoelectric power plants in the eleven Western states included within the Western Electricity Coordinating Council region. Water intensities are combined with retail electricity sales using an embedded resource accounting framework to estimate a value intensity of water embedded in electrical energy production and trade in the Western U.S. States with lower water intensities and higher retail electricity prices tend to be net importers of electricity and have the highest value intensities. A 35% increase in the value intensity of water embedded in electricity traded in export was shown to have occurred relative to electricity produced for in-state use. This increase in the value intensity of embedded water suggests that embedded water in the electricity trade has already emerged as a substitute for direct trade in water resources, and that this trade is organized in a manner that appears to benefit both importing and exporting parties.