Renewable Energy

In my post relating to the South-North Water Diversion Project I outlined how China has become over reliant on water intensive energy sources such as coal, which accounts for 12% of total water withdrawals. With demand for energy and coal expected to rise as the population increases and urbanises, this will put further pressure on water resources in the already arid northern provinces. The northern provinces will suffer most as this is where most of the coal is mined and where the power plants are located. Four-fifths of China’s total coal reserves are located in these regions, meaning that the need for less water intensive modes of energy generation has never been greater.

Figure 1: Areas of water stress and mode of power generation

Source: China Water Risk

This is one of the reasons behind China’s recent surge in investment and production of renewable energy sources. A new report has suggested that by increasing reliance on renewable energy sources and adapting China’s current energy sector with new improved technologies they could reduce water use by 42% (IRENA and China Water Risk,2016).
“The global issues of water, energy and climate are completely interconnected. The only effective, immediately available solution to meet the rising demand for energy while limiting environmental impacts, is to scale up renewable energy. China has recognised this and must continue its leadership in the global energy transition.” Adnan Z. Amin, IRENA Director-General.

The IRENA report focuses on the interconnected nature of China’s energy production and water resources. It concludes that in order to reduce carbon emissions and free up water for more important uses in agriculture and households China must invest in renewable energy.

China it seems has got the message, as it has become one of the leaders in the renewable energy transition, spending $103bn on renewable energy last year (36% of world total spend) (Rumney, 2016). China is aiming to source 20% of its energy from renewables by 2030, in a bid to reduce carbon emissions and save water. Experts believe that it is economically and technically feasible for China to reach a stage where they are producing 26% of their energy thorough renewable sources (IRENA). If China were to reach their target of 20% by 2030 then they will be reducing the pressure on their water resources for energy by 42%. This saving is mainly due to the fact that the two main renewable sources that China are investing in, solar and wind, can operate efficiently at an extremely low water cost. Solar requires a significantly lower amount of water than is required by thermal to produce the same amount of electricity and wind requires non at all.

Figure 2: Water and carbon intensity of power generation

Source: IRENA

Figure 2 shows the potential improvements in water consumption and emissions that switching to renewable energy could provide by 2030. It is clear then that policies and practices such as these are making a real difference in China’s struggle for water security. It is not the grandiose engineering projects that cost billions and displace millions but the more subtle and sustainable policies, such as investing in renewable energy, that will help the most.