Apr 1, 2016

Development needs water and energy

Growht manufacturing increase water scarcity

Mexico is on the verge of economic growth in the manufacturing and energy sectors in the coming years and the majority of Mexico's population and economic production is located on the comparatively water-scarce central and northern region. Today, agriculture remains Mexico's most water-intensive industry, accounting for 77 percent of total use. The industrial and municipal sectors account for the remaining extractions.

Water stress by hydrological administrative region
Pollution from manufacturing and energy sectors increase water scarcity that their waste finish on the surface water sources. In Monterrey, electronics manufacturing is the largest industrial sector, but the San Juan Basin, in which the city is located, has less than 500 cubic meters of water per person per year. Groundwater sources in the basin are also showing signs of overuse. Still, manufacturing is expected to remain an integral part of the Mexican economy, and the industry will continue to compete for the limited water resources in the north.
Water acces in northern Mexico is subjected to water sharing agreements with the United States. Mexico is in a stronger position in terms of the flow of the Rio Grande than it is for its other major shared river with the United States, the Colorado River. However, the 1944 treaty, which governs shared surface water distribution between the United States and Mexico, decreases the amount of water available from the Rio Grande for use in Mexico, increasing competition along parts of the border. To better utilize the limited water resources and to mitigate future constraints because of water scarcity.

Water scarcity threatens oil and gas development zones in Coahuila

Coahuila lies mostly in the hydrologic region of Rio Bravo, which has a water stress index of 77%. This means that 77% of the region's mean renewable water resources are already allocated. Agriculture is the largest use of both ground and surface water by far, this represents a fresh water consumption of around 800 million m3/year.
“...A newer study by Texas A&M University last year reported that hydraulic fracturing in the Eagle Ford used 620 million cubic meters 
(164 billion gallons) of groundwater annually. Aquifers in the region were being drawn down at a rate 2.5 times faster than their recharge rates...”
Coahuila is the focus of expansive and risk water-consuming oil and natural gas development. This region represent the second driest state of Mexico. The water available resources is supplied from aquifers. Normally to produce 1.6 million barrels of oil and 7 billion cubic feet of natural gas daily (Texas Eagle Ford shale production) needs 4-5 million gallons of fresh water.
In 2013 the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimated that northern Mexico reserves held 13 billion barrels of shale oil and 600 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the region is considered as one of most potentially productive shale energy zones on the planet. However to develop all this potential enormous quantities of water are required.
Fracking water demand for 2011 amounts to 30 to 50% of all water use in the drilled Eagle Ford counties. (study by the University of Texas).
A similar consumption of water for fracking to develop the energy potential in northern Mexico represents nearly one-third of the 1.96 billion m3 of water currently used per year in Coahuila. Fresh water is so scarce in the region that the Mexico government has already announced that it will not issue new groundwater use permits for oil and gas development.
Coahuila energy potential is attractive business but this have 2 important isous; if Coahuila are capable to produce the same quantities of fosil energy respect to Eagle Ford and the Coahuila water crisis.

Waste: big environmental issue but a clean resource of energy

Waste have a large environmental impact, such as pollution of groundwater and health problems. Other aspect that we can considered that an issue is the economic impact; millions of dollars are investing in waste management, without eliminating the risk that waste represents. Mexico have a big waste resource, is the ninth Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) generator of the world; 39,385,595 t/yr. with environmental stress of 20.3 t of MSW/km2.
Today EAWC technologies can offer sustainable solutions to transform waste in energy. Significant valuable recourses are created from the EAWC Waste Management Process (EAWC-WtE). For Example, 1000 tons-per day of waste is processed at a typical large municipality. The operation's daily output, could be hundreds of thousands Kilowatt hours, millions of gallons drinking water and millions of cubic feet of valuable hydrogen gas for sustainable power generation.
Source: EAWC Technologies
Fossil energy need big investment to extract and process oil or natural gas. Excluding the pollution impact generated and the enormous consumption of water required to develop Coahuila’s shale resources Goldman and Sachs estimated would be needed $US 662 billion to $US 1.02 trillion. Waste in Mexico has enormous energy potential; is a free resource ! and their transformation with EAWC-WtE technology is a zero impact process and don’t need natural water resources.

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