PNNL

Abstract

Many studies over the last two decades have addressed the “water-energy nexus,” generally defined as the inter-dependency between water and energy in their supply, processing, distribution, and use. The research community currently disaggregates the water-energy nexus into two components: “water for energy” and “energy for water.” While there seems to be clear consensus on the definition of “water for energy”—that is, water required for the extraction, processing, and transformation of energy as well as the irrigation of bioenergy—there has been less agreement on the definition and system boundaries of “energy for water.” We represent six integrated assessment modeling teams presently incorporating the hydrologic system and water demands into existing global models of energy, agriculture, land use, and climate. In this article, we propose system boundaries of “energy for water” that are appropriate for integrated energy and water modeling, and introduce a third category of processes that are relevant for the water-energy nexus, but that are not logically classified as either “water for energy” or “energy for water.”