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Infrastructure of the Future
Switchboard, from NRDC —
... system, which provides basic sanitation services that keep sewage out of our basements, streets, and waterways and provide effective filtration for tap water. But Congress not only funded rehabilitation of the decaying existing infrastructure, but also directed funding to green infrastructure and water and energy efficiency. While the text is sparse, these words mean a lot. They mean that Congress understands that saving water also saves energy and reduces greenhouse gases. They mean that Congress has recognized that trees, soil and types of vegetation ...
Low Energy Desalination Startup Gets Major Funding
Green Daily —
... How exactly do they achieve that? That's a trade secret, of course, but appears to have something to do with using a low heat method for sucking salt and contaminants out of water. The company's proprietary "Engineered Osmosis" process reportedly consumes only 10% of the electricity and fuel used by a conventional desalination plant. Water production is already the largest drain on California's energy grid. Oasys recently ended a ...
Caring for U.S. water on World Water Day
Switchboard, from NRDC —
... Although many of these improvements actually save consumers money over the long run (and can also save energy, a topic NRDC explored here), we believe that incentives to make the initial investments will help spur the widespread use of water-saving measures, so we were delighted to see that water efficiency projects were among those specifically targeted for funding in the recent stimulus bill. But these funds alone won't ensure the full deployment of needed water efficiency equipment and techniques. To do that, we believe that the country needs a suite of ...
Don’t Flush an Energy Opportunity
The Energy Collective —
... In “Energy Down the Drain,” a 2004 study of the hidden costs of California’s water supply, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Pacific Institute found that the “end use of water–especially energy-intensive uses like washing clothes and taking showers–consumes more energy than any other part of the urban water conveyance and treatment cycle” and that “significant amounts of energy” can be saved through conservation. For example, one of their case studies found that if San Diego provided its next 100,000 acre feet of water through conservation instead of ...
Don’t Flush an Energy Opportunity
Climate Progress —
... In “Energy Down the Drain,” a 2004 study of the hidden costs of California’s water supply, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Pacific Institute found that the “end use of water–especially energy-intensive uses like washing clothes and taking showers–consumes more energy than any other part of the urban water conveyance and treatment cycle” and that “significant amounts of energy” can be saved through conservation. For example, one of their case studies found that if San Diego provided its next 100,000 acre feet of ...
How much water will farmers in California get this year? The answer may surprise you.
Switchboard, from NRDC —
... In many cases these priority contractors can conserve water through improved water use efficiency. Sometimes the farmers make significant money saving water, because water conservation can also save energy. Over the past two years, the farmers with priority contracts at Reclamation district 108 apparently were able to save $300,000 a year by reducing their water use and saving the power needed to operate pumps to drain their fields. They were still ...
America's Water Crisis Gets the Jon Stewart Treatment
Switchboard, from NRDC —
... Glennon's book and interview on the Daily Show do a good job of outlining the problem. For instance, he points out that some energy technologies consume vast amounts of water and that energy policy and water management are not always in sync. This is an area my NRDC colleagues and I have studied thoroughly, and we have successfully pushed for greater efficiencies and better planning within in California (Read about our energy and water work here.) ...
