Feature
Story
Water:
The Linchpin of District Energy
Jonathan Lanciani, Cofounder and President, Organica-Sustainable Water;
The stress on the world’s water esources is a grave concern, with public health, policy and
economic implications that will impact
society for generations to come. As
our population continues to grow in
both size and societal expectations, the
amount of water we use climbs at an
even higher rate. Coupled with global
climate change, increased human water
demand is already causing strain on
the environment and drinking water
supplies in the U.S., with even greater
global implications.
A study produced by Tetra Tech,
a global consulting engineering firm,
suggests that 70 percent of U.S. counties will experience the effects of
water scarcity, and one-third will be at
high risk of running out of water by
2050. Echoing this concern, the World
Economic Forum has warned that water
scarcity has the potential to dwarf all
historic global financial and humanitarian crises, with the impact on agriculture, industry, energy production, health
and economies potentially catastrophic.
Consequently, states, communities and
businesses have all started to develop
new policies in order to manage water –
a finite resource – more efficiently.
Whether they serve cities, college
campuses or health care facilities, all
district energy systems rely heavily
on water. Just like many other at-risk
industries, district energy will be heav-
ily affected by future water scarcity. As
water stress becomes more visible, it is
imperative that all large consumers of
water begin managing water resources in
a more sustainable manner. We can do
this by redefining our understanding of
“waste” and “resource.” We must ask: Is
the wastewater, greywater or stormwater
that flows from our site a waste or an
untapped resource?
Total Water Management
Strategy
Arguably, from power generation to
heating and cooling, water is one of the
most important ingredients in the current district energy model. Since large
amounts of water are needed to run district energy plants, bleak water forecasts
should be a concern for the industry
and a reason to push water to the top of
its agenda. As the use of district energy
systems continues to grow in parallel
with the expanding urban and campus
populations they serve, water resource
management will become an increasingly
important issue in this industry.
Without reliable and cost-effective
sources of water, how will district energy
providers operate and remain financially
viable? The solution is an integrated
total water management strategy that
focuses on recycling all forms of water
as opposed to the conventional approach
of managing water separately based
on its current form (i.e., potable water,
wastewater, storm water). The goal of
total water management is to “de-risk”
our susceptibility to drought and water
scarcity, protect the environment and
minimize the financial impact of escalat-
ing costs by creating local and redundant
water sources.
