Archive for June, 2012

Burning Our Rivers: The Water Footprint of Electricity
June 30th, 2012

Via River Network, some thoughts on a new report examining the water footprint of power generation: What goes into our grid matters a lot. Thermoelectric energy is the fastest growing use of water in the country. Reservoirs used for hydropower evaporate more water than all of the cooling towers in the country combined. Looked at […]

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Water Grab In Kansas Oil Boom
June 12th, 2012

Via CNN’s Money page, a look at the watergy challenge in southern Kansas: In the farm country of southern Kansas, water is a precious commodity. And not just for farming — for fracking. In hydraulic fracturing, water is injected into the ground at a high pressure to help crack shale rock and bring oil to […]

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Reduced Water Flows To Hit European Power Supplies
June 7th, 2012

Via Energy Daily, a report that reduced river flows and warmer water due to climate change will lead to power supply disruptions in Europe.  As the article notes: “…A European Commission-funded study conducted in part by the Wageningen University and Research Center in the Netherlands predicted thermoelectric power generating capacity from 2031-60 will decrease 6-19 […]

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About This Blog And Its Author
As the scarcity of water and energy continues to grow, the linkage between these two critical resources will become more defined and even more acute in the months ahead.  This blog is committed to analyzing and referencing articles, reports, and interviews that can help unlock the nascent, complex and expanding linkages between water and energy -- The Watergy Nexus -- and will endeavor to provide a central clearinghouse for insightful articles and comments for all to consider.

Educated at Yale University (Bachelor of Arts - History) and Harvard (Master in Public Policy - International Development), Monty Simus has held a lifelong interest in environmental and conservation issues, primarily as they relate to freshwater scarcity, renewable energy, and national park policy.  Working from a water-scarce base in Las Vegas with his wife and son, he is the founder of Water Politics, an organization dedicated to the identification and analysis of geopolitical water issues arising from the world’s growing and vast water deficits, and is also a co-founder of SmartMarkets, an eco-preneurial venture that applies web 2.0 technology and online social networking innovations to motivate energy & water conservation.  He previously worked for an independent power producer in Central Asia; co-authored an article appearing in the Summer 2010 issue of the Tulane Environmental Law Journal, titled: “The Water Ethic: The Inexorable Birth Of A Certain Alienable Right”; and authored an article appearing in the inaugural issue of Johns Hopkins University's Global Water Magazine in July 2010 titled: “H2Own: The Water Ethic and an Equitable Market for the Exchange of Individual Water Efficiency Credits.”