The water-energy nexus at water supply and its implications on the integrated water and energy management.

Water and energy are highly interdependent in the modern world, and hence, it is important to understand their constantly changing and nonlinear interconnections to inform the integrated management of water and energy. In this study, a hydrologic model, a water systems model, and an energy model were developed and integrated into a system dynamics modeling framework. This framework was then applied to a water supply system in the northeast US to capture its water-energy interactions under a set of future population, climate, and system operation scenarios. A hydrologic model was first used to simulate the system's hydrologic inflows and outflows under temperature and precipitation changes on a weekly-basis. A water systems model that combines the hydrologic model and management rules (e.g., water release and transfer) was then developed to dynamically simulate the system's water storage and water head. Outputs from the water systems model were used in the energy model to estimate hydropower generation. It was found that critical water-energy synergies and tradeoffs exist, and there is a possibility for integrated water and energy management to achieve better outcomes. This analysis also shows the importance of a holistic understanding of the systems as a whole, which would allow utility managers to make proactive long-term management decisions. The modeling framework is generalizable to other water supply systems with hydropower generation capacities to inform the integrated management of water and energy resources.

[1]  Lucy Corcoran,et al.  Energy Recovery in the Water & Waste Water Industry using Micro-Hydropower: A Review , 2012 .

[2]  Weiwei Mo,et al.  Understanding the influence of climate change on the embodied energy of water supply. , 2016, Water research.

[3]  Paul Coughlan,et al.  Energy recovery potential using micro hydropower in water supply networks in the UK and Ireland , 2013 .

[4]  Bryan W. Karney,et al.  Life-Cycle Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory for Water Treatment Systems , 2007 .

[5]  Slobodan P. Simonovic,et al.  Spatial System Dynamics: New Approach for Simulation of Water Resources Systems , 2004 .

[6]  Lixiao Zhang,et al.  System dynamics modeling for urban energy consumption and CO2 emissions: A case study of Beijing, China , 2013 .

[7]  Charles R. McLean,et al.  A System Dynamics Modeling Framework for Sustainable Manufacturing | NIST , 2009 .

[8]  Scott Samuelsen,et al.  Quantifying climate change impacts on hydropower generation and implications on electric grid greenhouse gas emissions and operation , 2016 .

[9]  John C. Crittenden,et al.  Life cycle assessment of three water supply systems: importation, reclamation and desalination. , 2009 .

[10]  M. Webber,et al.  Evaluating the energy consumed for water use in the United States , 2012 .

[11]  J. M. Fernández,et al.  The dynamics of water scarcity on irrigated landscapes: Mazarrón and Aguilas in south-eastern Spain , 2004 .

[12]  A. Ford.  Modeling the Environment: An Introduction To System Dynamics Modeling Of Environmental Systems , 1999 .

[13]  Stelios Grafakos,et al.  Quantification of the urban water-energy nexus in México City, México, with an assessment of water-system related carbon emissions. , 2017, The Science of the total environment.

[14]  D. Conway,et al.  Greenhouse-gas emissions from energy use in the water sector , 2011 .

[15]  Helena M. Ramos,et al.  Clean power in water supply systems as a sustainable solution: from planning to practical implementation. , 2010 .

[16]  Qiong Zhang,et al.  Evaluating Municipal Water Management Options with the Incorporation of Water Quality and Energy Consumption , 2014, Water Resources Management.

[17]  John D. Sterman,et al.  System Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World , 2002 .

[18]  William M. Alley,et al.  On the Treatment of Evapotranspiration, Soil Moisture Accounting, and Aquifer Recharge in Monthly Water Balance Models , 1984 .

[19]  Jeffrey G. Arnold,et al.  Model Evaluation Guidelines for Systematic Quantification of Accuracy in Watershed Simulations , 2007 .

[20]  J. Mihelcic,et al.  Embodied energy comparison of surface water and groundwater supply options. , 2011, Water research.

[21]  Weiwei Mo,et al.  Measuring the embodied energy in drinking water supply systems: a case study in the Great Lakes region. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[22]  Stefano Galelli,et al.  Examining global electricity supply vulnerability to climate change using a high-fidelity hydropower dam model. , 2017, The Science of the total environment.

[23]  C. Michele,et al.  Seasonal aspects of the energy-water nexus: The case of a run-of-the-river hydropower plant , 2018 .

[24]  Chong-Yu Xu,et al.  Methodology and comparative study of monthly water balance models in Belgium, China and Burma , 1992 .

[25]  Jacinto F. Fabiosa,et al.  Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change , 2008, Science.

[26]  Chris Buckley,et al.  Carbon footprint analysis for increasing water supply and sanitation in South Africa: a case study , 2009 .

[27]  Weiwei Mo,et al.  Energy-water nexus analysis of enhanced water supply scenarios: a regional comparison of Tampa Bay, Florida, and San Diego, California. , 2014, Environmental science & technology.

[28]  Tiantian Yang,et al.  A Framework to Provide Optimal Management Strategies for California's Reservoirs in Achieving Sustainable Water Supply and High Hydropower Productivity , 2015 .

[29]  Nancy L. Barber,et al.  Estimated use of water in the United States in 2010 , 2014 .

[30]  Francesco Cherubini,et al.  Energy- and greenhouse gas-based LCA of biofuel and bioenergy systems: Key issues, ranges and recommendations , 2009 .

[31]  Qiong Zhang,et al.  Modeling the influence of various water stressors on regional water supply infrastructures and their embodied energy , 2016 .

[32]  Yang-Chi Chang,et al.  A system dynamic based DSS for sustainable coral reef management in Kenting coastal zone, Taiwan , 2008 .

[33]  YuLong Xie,et al.  Vulnerability of the US western electric grid to hydro-climatological conditions: How bad can it get? , 2015 .

[34]  Gregory W. Characklis,et al.  Evaluating the Financial Vulnerability of a Major Electric Utility in the Southeastern U.S. to Drought under Climate Change and an Evolving Generation Mix. , 2017, Environmental science & technology.

[35]  Patrick Hostert,et al.  Uncovering land-use dynamics driven by human decision-making - A combined model approach using cellular automata and system dynamics , 2012, Environ. Model. Softw..

[36]  J. Pittock,et al.  The energy-water nexus: managing the links between energy and water for a sustainable future. , 2010 .

[37]  Gary Brierley,et al.  The Use of System Dynamics Simulation in Water Resources Management , 2009 .

[38]  S. Benabdallah,et al.  Multi-Site Validation of the SWAT Model on the Bani Catchment: Model Performance and Predictive Uncertainty , 2016 .

[39]  V. V. Srinivas,et al.  A hybrid stochastic model for multiseason streamflow simulation , 2001 .

[40]  Anthony J. Jakeman,et al.  Selecting among five common modelling approaches for integrated environmental assessment and management , 2013, Environ. Model. Softw..

[41]  J Clauson-Kaas,et al.  Life cycle assessment of three water systems in Copenhagen--a management tool of the future. , 2011, Water science and technology : a journal of the International Association on Water Pollution Research.

[42]  A. Horvath,et al.  Energy and air emission effects of water supply. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[43]  Scott Samuelsen,et al.  Evaluating options for balancing the water-electricity nexus in California: part 1--securing water availability. , 2014, The Science of the total environment.

[44]  Prem Vrat,et al.  Application of a system dynamics approach for assessment and mitigation of CO2 emissions from the cement industry. , 2006, Journal of environmental management.

[45]  E. Friedrich,et al.  Life-cycle assessment as an environmental management tool in the production of potable water. , 2002, Water science and technology : a journal of the International Association on Water Pollution Research.