GLOBAL RESOURCE, CONSUMPTION AND SECURITY Flashcards
Define Water, Food and Energy security
Water: access to safe drinking water and sanitation
Food: availability and access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to live a healthy lifestyle
Energy: access to clean, reliable and affordable energy sources
Water-Food-Energy Nexus
these 3 elements are interdependent –> when there is change in one sector, it has an impact one on or both of the other sectors
Without considering its interconnections, it risks unintended consequences
Water: essential for the mining, refining, and transportation of energy sources as well as producing crops and rearing livestock.
- Food production is the world’s largest single use of water accounting for about 70% of water usage.
- Food production may affect water quality and quantity (water extraction/pollution)
Energy: needed for the extraction, transportation and distribution of water and constructions of damns. Also needed in farming (machinery/transportation)
Agriculture accounts for about 30% of global energy use
Interactions intensify as demand for resources increase with population growth and move towards more source-intensive lifestyles
> by 2050, its predicted that the demand for energy will nearly double while water and food demand expected to increase by >50%
As a result, many countries will face difficulties providing for growing demands, and this is further intensified by climate change and depletion of natural resources
> rapid inc in resource use since mid 1990s has accelerated the risk of resource scarcity
Eg. the replacement of food crops for biofuel crops raised food prices during the mid 2010s was a measure designed to improve energy security, but it reduced food and water security while increasing greenhouse gas emissions as a result
Water-Food-Energy Nexus affected by climate change
at regional and local scale, specific places and people are short of resources due to physical economic or political forces causing imbalance in the relative scarcity of water, energy and land. (further complicated due to climate change)
climate change is expected to increase the frequency of climate-related shocks, impacting supply of W, F, E
1. influence food availability, crop yields, and distribution of pest and diseases
2. higher temps and evapotranspiration rates will reduce the water supplies from natural sources (eg rain) and inc need for irrigation
3. energy demand may rise due to inc need for pumping purification or treatment of water
4. may be inc competition between the agricultural and energy sectors for scarce water sources
all 3 nexus resources are significantly affected by climate change
they require a holistic approach to mitigate the impacts of climate change
Impacts on attempting to limit climate change
- production of biofuels and hydroelectric pwr may create new demands for water sources
- some methods of adaptation to climate change are very energy intensive (drip irrigation)
- increased groundwater usage will require extra pumping resulting in more energy resources needed
Benefits of adaptations to climate change (knock-off effects)
Water security
Water is the main avenue through which climate change initially affects the water-energy-food nexus
Initial impact of climate change is usually on water security
1. droughts are more prolonged and frequent
2. flood events increase with intensity
3. distribution of rainfall changes in some areas
The availability of clean fresh water in some regions seem to be the main point of congestion in the nexus
- unlike energy and food security. congestions in water security are difficult to manage through international trade and transportation
many countries have yet to integrate water planning into these integrated policies at a national level.
- this weakens the strategic effectiveness
Impacts on hydroelectric power supply
- Climate change and shifting river patterns are causing glaciers to shrink, leaving less ice to melt.
- This means less water flows into rivers, which lowers the ability of Hydroelectric Power (HEP) plants to produce electricity.
Eg. power generation companies in China make use of massive seasonal runoff from the Himalayas and Tibet plateau. Climate change can lead to dangerous water and pwr shortages in the long run
