Peter Gleick: Water Efficiency is Key to Saving Energy

Peter Gleick, president of the Pacific Institute and water expert extraordinaire, has been conducting research on the nexus between water and energy for as long as anybody. According to Gleick, "Some of the cheapest greenhouse gas emission reductions available seem to be not energy-efficiency programs, but water-efficiency programs."

Gleick's statement is backed up by a California Energy Commission report that found that significant energy savings can be achieved through water efficiency programs for about half the cost of traditional energy saving strategies, such as switching your old light bulb in for a compact fluorescent. Think about it: for little more than the price of a lightbulb, you can replace your showerhead with a low-flow model. A family of four can save up to 20,000 gallons of water a year and 3,000 kWh of electricity if they use an electric hot water heater. This simple switch would reduce your households carbon footprint by up to 4,000 pounds.

In addition to saving water and energy in our homes, other sectors can achieve substantial water-related energy savings as well. David Zoldoske, director of the Center for Irrigation Technology at California State University-Fresno, has been helping the agricultural industry do just that. Through improvements in the efficiency of several irrigation pumps, David has helped farmers save 19.4 million kWh of electricity per year.

But as climate change and population growth drive the depletion of many local water supplies, the energy intensity of our water will likely grow in the coming decades. In fact, with a severe drought currently gripping California, many of the gains made by David Zoldoske over the last few years might be erased as farmers are forced to dig deeper wells and consider more energy intensive alternative sources.

Saving water now will help us avoid some painful decisions later. As Peter Gleick points out, "It takes a lot of energy to move, treat, clean, and use water. A remarkable amount of water....so whatever we can do to reduce the energy required to meet our water needs reduces greenhouse gases."

Not only will water efficiency help us stretch our existing supplies and enhance the resiliency of our rivers, but saving water is among the most cost-effective ways to save energy and reduce the chances of catastrophic climate change.

This posting was based on an article by Ben Block at the World Watch Institute.