Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania

In African nations, national and regional development targets for water and energy sectors seldom consider the nexus between the two, risking imbalances and inefficiencies in resource allocation and utilization. A typical example is the development and expansion of biofuel in the Wami Ruvu River Bas...

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Main Authors: Mngereza Miraji, Xi Li, Jie Liu, Chunmiao Zheng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2019-06-01
Series:Sustainability
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/11/3109
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spelling doaj-28f0945a18e148d39b8925dc27bbbd522020-11-24T21:27:54ZengMDPI AGSustainability2071-10502019-06-011111310910.3390/su11113109su11113109Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, TanzaniaMngereza Miraji0Xi Li1Jie Liu2Chunmiao Zheng3Institute of Water Sciences, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaInstitute of Water Sciences, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaInstitute of Water Sciences, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaInstitute of Water Sciences, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaIn African nations, national and regional development targets for water and energy sectors seldom consider the nexus between the two, risking imbalances and inefficiencies in resource allocation and utilization. A typical example is the development and expansion of biofuel in the Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania (WRB). Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) model was applied to the WRB to investigate the Water Energy Nexus (WEN), specifically, whether the development plan calling for biofuel expansion is a sound approach. Results show that WEN is much stronger in the biofuel irrigation consuming 69.3% and 61% of total biofuel’s water and energy requirement, respectively. By 2035, the nexus continues to be stronger, consuming 54.5% and 49% of total biofuel’s water and energy requirement, respectively, and thus first generation biofuels use much more resources in the growing than the refining process. An additional 768.2 million meter cubic of water and 413.4 million kWh of energy are needed for planned biofuel expansion, reallocating water to biofuels in water-scarce regions inherit related problems to other sectors such as increasing water use for the industry, agriculture, and energy sector by 67%, 45%, and 9%, respectively, which could further exacerbate stresses on water and energy supplies in the basin. Biofuel generation rely heavily on energy imports, as it consumes substantially more energy than it produces. Policies should promote the coordinated development of sustainable biofuel programs that are less water intensive with very low inputs of fossil fuels.https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/11/3109water energy nexusbiofuelWami Ruvu BasinTanzaniaAfrica
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Mngereza Miraji
Xi Li
Jie Liu
Chunmiao Zheng
spellingShingle Mngereza Miraji
Xi Li
Jie Liu
Chunmiao Zheng
Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
Sustainability
water energy nexus
biofuel
Wami Ruvu Basin
Tanzania
Africa
author_facet Mngereza Miraji
Xi Li
Jie Liu
Chunmiao Zheng
author_sort Mngereza Miraji
title Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
title_short Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
title_full Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
title_fullStr Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
title_full_unstemmed Evaluation of Water and Energy Nexus in Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania
title_sort evaluation of water and energy nexus in wami ruvu river basin, tanzania
publisher MDPI AG
series Sustainability
issn 2071-1050
publishDate 2019-06-01
description In African nations, national and regional development targets for water and energy sectors seldom consider the nexus between the two, risking imbalances and inefficiencies in resource allocation and utilization. A typical example is the development and expansion of biofuel in the Wami Ruvu River Basin, Tanzania (WRB). Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) model was applied to the WRB to investigate the Water Energy Nexus (WEN), specifically, whether the development plan calling for biofuel expansion is a sound approach. Results show that WEN is much stronger in the biofuel irrigation consuming 69.3% and 61% of total biofuel’s water and energy requirement, respectively. By 2035, the nexus continues to be stronger, consuming 54.5% and 49% of total biofuel’s water and energy requirement, respectively, and thus first generation biofuels use much more resources in the growing than the refining process. An additional 768.2 million meter cubic of water and 413.4 million kWh of energy are needed for planned biofuel expansion, reallocating water to biofuels in water-scarce regions inherit related problems to other sectors such as increasing water use for the industry, agriculture, and energy sector by 67%, 45%, and 9%, respectively, which could further exacerbate stresses on water and energy supplies in the basin. Biofuel generation rely heavily on energy imports, as it consumes substantially more energy than it produces. Policies should promote the coordinated development of sustainable biofuel programs that are less water intensive with very low inputs of fossil fuels.
topic water energy nexus
biofuel
Wami Ruvu Basin
Tanzania
Africa
url https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/11/3109
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