Water IMPACT Tool (Water Integrated Mapping Power and Carbon Tracker)

ABOUT THE Water IMPACT TOOL 

Electricity is vital to modern life, but its generation can lead to significant environmental impacts, particularly regarding water use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The indirect water usage and GHG emissions linked to electricity consumption are known as Scope 2 footprints. The interactive Water IMPACT map highlights the water and carbon intensity associated with electricity use across each balancing authority in the U.S. This tool allows users to input their facility's operational details and access energy-environment benchmarking data. By entering an address or clicking on the map, users can view the intensity factors for a specific area of interest. Additional related resources are available below the map. 

MAP ELEMENTS AND DESCRIPTIONS 

Intensity factors of electricity use 

  • Water consumption intensity (L/kWh)  

Water consumption represents the portion of water withdrawn that does not return to its source due to irreversible losses, affecting local water availability. Water consumption intensity measures the volume (liters) of water consumed per unit of electricity used (kWh), considering the primary allocation of water consumption for hydroelectric generation.  

  • Water withdrawal intensity (L/kWh) 

Thermoelectric power plants require significant cooling, which is often achieved through water withdrawal. This water is used to dissipate heat via methods like evaporative cooling or once-through cooling before being returned to the environment. Water withdrawal intensity quantifies the volume of water withdrawn (liters) per unit of electricity used (kWh), accounting for the primary allocation of water withdrawal for hydroelectric generation.   

  • CO2-eq Emission intensity (kg/kWh) 

Electricity generation, particularly from fossil fuels like coal, natural gas, and oil, leads to substantial GHG emissions. CO2-eq emission intensity refers to the quantity (kilograms) of GHG emissions (CO2-equivalent) per unit of electricity consumed (kWh).  

Electricity mix 

The electricity grid is constantly evolving, with varying fuel types contributing to electricity generation. The environmental impact of electricity is influenced by the specific fuels used. This tool provides detailed information on the electricity mix by fuel type in each local grid from the perspective of end users. By entering an address or clicking on the map, users can see the percentage of electricity sourced from coal, natural gas, petroleum, nuclear, hydroelectric, solar, wind, and other methods (e.g., biomass, geothermal) within a balancing authority. 

Operating hours 

The map allows users to choose from common electricity use profiles for commercial facilities. 

  • Daytime 

This pattern indicates facilities with mostly single peaking day wide load shape with a small percentage. 

  • Nighttime 

This pattern indicates the presence of a single wide peak at night and generally represents facilities that operate only during the nighttime. 

  • 24-hour 

Flat load shape indicates facilities that continuously operate 24-hours a day without any specific peak hour. 

Workdays 

The map allows users to choose from common operational patterns for commercial facilities. 

  • Weekdays 

This indicates the facilities that only operate during the weekdays (Mon-Fri).  

  • 7-days 

This indicates the facilities that operate also during the weekends.  

ESTIMATED INTENSITY FACTORS 

This tool utilizes a range of publicly available data to estimate hourly water usage and GHG emissions linked to electricity consumption in each U.S. balancing authority. Key data sources include the EIA Form 923, which provides monthly electricity generation details and fuel types for U.S. power plants, and the EPA's eGRID database, which tracks annual emissions (CO2, NOX, SO2, N2O, CH4) from power plants over 1 MW. Additionally, the EIA’s thermoelectric cooling data offers insights into water withdrawal and consumption for larger power plants (over 100 MW). Hourly electricity operating data from balancing authorities is sourced from the EIA 930 grid monitor, which includes near real-time information on net generation by fuel type and electricity transfers between authorities. By integrating power plant-level data on electricity generation, water use, and GHG emissions with detailed interchange data between balancing authorities, the tool estimates the environmental impact of each unit of electricity supplied within a balancing authority. The methodology, intensity factors, and associated scripts are openly available in a repository on Hydroshare.  

DOWNLOAD MAP INFORMATION 

You can download the entire balancing authority dataset behind this map for a specific year as an .xlsx data file from the map by choosing the Download icon in the left panel of the tab.  

DATA NOTES 

The electricity use profiles represent approximate hourly electricity use by different facility types, and the provides the approximate monthly Scope 2 water and carbon footprint based on monthly electricity use of a facility. However, if the hourly electricity use data is available, users can use the hourly data products of water and carbon intensity factors available on the Hydroshare for more accurate estimates of Scope 2 footprint.  

How to Cite 

Siddik, M. A. B., A. Shehabi, P. Rao, L. Marston (2024). Spatially and Temporally Detailed Water and Carbon Footprints of U.S. Electricity Generation and Use, HydroShare, http://www.hydroshare.org/resource/2f54448714554f83b9655da108f0fd3f