City-level water-energy nexus in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region

Abstract

Water-energy nexus in a city can either prompt or undermine its development. Yet in China, the relevant research is rarely found. This study accounts the city-level water-energy nexus in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in 2012 from both production and consumption perspectives, where input-output analysis based on city-level input-output tables are applied to conduct consumption-based accounts. Regarding water for energy, Beijing, Tianjin and Tangshan occupy the largest amounts of water for production in the energy sector, at 203 million tonnes (Mt), 148 Mt and 118 Mt, and they also consume most water for energy, at 6690 Mt, 1328 Mt and 1476 Mt. In terms of energy for water, Shijiazhuang and Tianjin have the largest amounts of CO2 emissions for production and consumption respectively, at 28 thousand tonnes (Kt) and 1746 Kt. Furthermore, local authorities should prioritise electricity sector as it holds 69% and 72% of the total water amounts for production and consumption in the energy sector. Besides, integrated management is crucial for cities with low water and energy efficiency (Baoding and Zhangjiakou), and for large CO2 emitters in Hebei province in order to ensure their water and energy sustainability without stunting their economic growth.

City‐level water withdrawal in China: Accounting methodology and applications

“…Some cities, such as Hengshui, Yantai, and Qingdao, have less water withdrawal per capita and lower water withdrawal intensity than others. Apart from a less water-consumptive production structure (Li et al, 2019b), some other possible reasons for this difference could be that these areas have advanced water conservation technology.…”

“…We ranked the water withdrawals of the secondary sectors in each city and identified the top three water users for each city, as indicated by the numbers and squares in For the industrial sectors, the high users at the city level include smelting and pressing of ferrous metals and mining and processing of ferrous metal ore, after the production and supply of electricity and hot water and raw chemical materials and products. Water is most used in industrial processes, such as mining, processing, cooling, air conditioning, clarifying, and washing (Fan et al, 2019b(Fan et al, , 2019cLi et al, 2019b). Similarly, the three services with the highest water use at the city level are accommodation and catering, education, and public management, social security.…”

Water Use for Energy Production and Conversion in Hebei Province, China

“…Considering the implement of the recent development plan ("The development of Xiongan New Area" and the "Two-child Policy"), hosting the Winter Olympic Games, and the technological innovation in the energy sector, without a doubt, it will exert great influence on the tense relationship between water and energy in Hebei Province. At this stage, studies focused on Hebei is commonly found on water-energy nexus and the decomposition analysis of water utilization in Jing-Jin-Ji region (Wang et al, 2015;Sun et al, 2018;Li X. et al, 2019). Specifically, for Hebei Province, Lv et al (2018) identified optimal strategies for the energy-water nexus system under multiple uncertainties and various water-saving scenarios (Lv et al, 2018).…”

Mapping Carbon and Water Networks in the North China Urban Agglomeration

“…The urban agglomeration is also one of the most carbon-intensive regions in China. 30 Interregional coordinated strategies for low carbon development and water supply are the main concerns of local governance. Although many studies have focused on the problems, the scope of these studies to trace the supply chain between Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei was at the regional level due to the methodology used and the data available at the time.…”