Webinar: Every Drop Counts

Transcription

1 Webinar: Every Drop Counts with Dianne Saxe Environmental Commissioner of Ontario June 15, 2017

2 Overview Why the energy use of municipal water systems matters What can Ontario do to reduce the energy footprint of water? 2

3 Preface: Who is the ECO? Impartial, independent watchdog Guardian of the Environmental Bill of Rights Non-partisan, reliable reports to the Legislature: Environment GHG/Climate Energy Special/Other 3

4 Ontario energy use: the big picture Latest data is from 2015 Overall energy use in 2015: down 1.7% from 2014 (preliminary) May be weather-related (warmer winter) Transition year for natural gas and electricity conservation Little change in utility program offerings Savings similar to

5 Ontario s energy use, by fuel (2015) 20% 4% 2% 1% 36% Natural Gas Transportation Fuel Electricity Other Fuels Propane Oil Fossil fuel energy sources 37% Note: Energy data used to create this graph is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, Report on Energy Supply and Demand. 5 Note: data used to create this chart will be revised before publication in our 2017 Energy Conservation Report, Volume 2, to be released later this summer.

6 Energy use per capita ( ) ,000,000 Gigajoules per person 13,800, Population 13,600,000 13,400,000 Energy used per person ( ) GJ per person ,200,000 13,000,000 12,800,000 Population ,600,000 12,400,000-8% ,200,000 Source: Statistics Canada, CANSIM Tables and Note: data used to create this chart will be revised before publication in our 2017 Energy Conservation Report, Volume 2, to be released later this summer.

7 1: Why energy in municipal water and wastewater systems? 7

8 38% of municipal energy use Source: O. Reg. 397/11, 2011 (Note: Percentages rounded to whole numbers). 8

9 Not just about energy use Water and wastewater systems represent: 32% of reported municipal GHG emissions (probably more!) Missed opportunities: renewable energy centres balancing the grid environmental benefits public savings (~$260M annually in energy costs) 9

10 Bottled water Ontario s municipal water and wastewater systems may be large energy users, but they are still much better than drinking bottled water. Vs. 10

11 Water and wastewater funding All levels of government are planning major investments in water infrastructure renewal 11

12 Ontario has a once-in-ageneration opportunity to cut energy costs and reduce the environmental footprint of municipal water and wastewater treatment systems.

13 2: What is the municipal water cycle? 13

14 14

15 Source: Ministry of Energy, O. Reg. 397/11, 2011 normalized data. 15

16 Many Efficiency Opportunities Pumps: Variable-speed drives Aeration controls: Aerate as needed based on oxygen sensors (half of wastewater plant energy use!) Leaks: At least 10% of treated and pumped water doesn t reach Ontarians (in some areas 40%!) Source: Hydratek 16

17 Load Shifting Cheaper electricity, fewer emissions Ontario success: Toronto s Transmission Operations Optimizer 17 Source: Adapted from IBI Group and City of Toronto, Smart Operations: City of Toronto s Water Transmission Optimization (presentation to World Water-Tech North America, October 2016).

18 3: Making energy reporting work 18

19 O. Reg. 397/11: Incomplete energy reporting Pumping facility reporting no longer required On-site energy production: not reported 19 Source: Ministry of Energy, O. Reg. 397/11, raw data ( ).

20 O. Reg. 397/11: Incomplete GHG Reporting? Avg. GHG emissions from a large WWTP? Nitrous Oxide? -substantial, but highly uncertain -add 41%-152% i Additional Fossil Carbon Dioxide? -add 8-18% ii? Additional Methane leakage? -add up to 23% iii WWTP process emissions not reported: CH 4, N 2 O, CO 2 20 i Based on MOE (2008) and IPCC (2006) ii Based on data in Tseng et al. (2016) iii Assuming 5% biogas leakage (Sahely et al. 2006)

21 Energy Reporting Action Some municipalities need help understanding the data and accessing savings: Need data fast and with value added analysis Funding energy audits/optimization programs Purchasing energy and flow meters for key equipment Energy efficiency training for operators 21

22 ECO Recommendations The Ministry of Energy should: make O. Reg. 397/11 energy reporting more accurate and useful by including: Pumping facilities; Energy produced on-site (e.g., biogas); and CH 4, N 2 O, and fossil-sourced CO 2 from wastewater. enable/require municipal water/wastewater systems to report their energy use on a more timely basis via Portfolio Manager.

23 ECO Recommendation The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change should include energy efficiency in the training and licencing requirements for drinking water/ wastewater system operators.

24 4: Asset management 24

25 What is an Asset Management Plan? Prioritizes municipal infrastructure investments over asset life-cycle (i.e., maintenance, building, renovating, etc.) If municipalities want infrastructure funding, they need one But how good are they? How do they affect energy use? 25

26 Lack of maintenance Financial and energy consequences Energy examples: leak detection and repair, pump maintenance 26 Source: Ontario Ministry of Infrastructure, Building Together - Guide for Municipal Asset Management Plans (2012), 10.

27 Good asset management planning Tightly linked to capital budget process what s in the plan actually gets done! Considers lifecycle costs (including operating energy costs), not just capital costs Considers non-traditional alternatives (water conservation, green infrastructure) first Provincial regulation under development Ontario success: Lake Huron and Elgin Water Supply System 27

28 ECO Recommendations As part of municipal asset management planning for water and wastewater infrastructure, the Ministry of Infrastructure should require consideration of: Energy and carbon costs in life-cycle cost analysis; and Green infrastructure and non-infrastructure alternatives, such as water conservation.

29 ECO Recommendation In water and wastewater infrastructure projects supported by provincial funding, the Ontario government should require consideration of opportunities to reduce energy use and GHG emissions.

30 5: Water conservation 30

31 We re getting better 31 Source: Statistics Canada, Municipal Water Use Report (multiple years); Table from Survey of Drinking Water Plants, 2013 (2015).

32 but there s much more potential Ontario success: Clarington s Priority Green Demonstration Project 32 Source: Sustainable Edge, Final Report for Priority Green Clarington - Water and Energy Demonstration Project.

33 Water conservation = enviro. benefits Especially for communities dependent on groundwater. Water conservation can help maintain: local water quality; water levels and flow; wetlands and springs; and stream temps. especially during summer climate change = more droughts Source: Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. 33

34 What works? Water meters! See p of EDC 8 million Ontarians in detached homes ~98% metered, per capita use has dropped 5 million Ontarians in multi-unit buildings % individually metered? unknown 34

35 Other opportunities Codes & standards (esp. toilets) Unit metering in apartments/condos (via Building Code) Water use reporting for public buildings (as per private sector) Water conservation programs (e.g., collaboration with gas/electric utilities) Greywater reuse (via Building Code) 35

36 The summer peak See p. 89 of EDC 36 Source: City of Toronto.

37 ECO Recommendations The Ministry of Municipal Affairs should amend the Building Code to emphasize water efficiency and conservation, via: Higher efficiency standards for fixtures, especially toilets; Reducing summer peak outdoor water use; Ensuring plumbing design of multi-unit buildings is compatible with water metering of individual units; and Expanding opportunities for greywater and rainwater reuse, including greywater-ready plumbing design.

38 ECO Recommendations The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change should: set water efficiency standards for toilets at point-of-sale; and require water use reporting and water conservation plans for BPS.

39 ECO Recommendation The Independent Electricity System Operator and gas/electric utilities should look to integrate water conservation with existing energy conservation programs, such as whole home retrofits.

40 6: Water reuse 40

41 Examples Calgary treated wastewater reused for cooling at Shepard Energy Centre Israel reuses 80% (400 million m 3 ) of its wastewater California reuses 826 million m 3 of wastewater annually 41 California irrigation using recycled water. Source: istock.

42 Some end uses need less treatment 42

43 Water reuse opportunities continue to be challenging to implement given the lack of clarity around treatment requirements - Town of Oakville, ECO survey

44 ECO Recommendation The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change should establish standards for water reuse.

45 7: Phosphorus 45

46 Toxic algal blooms 46 Source: NOAA, 2017.

47 Main sources: urban & agricultural runoff 47 Source: MOECC.

48 High cost for little benefit? Phosphorus removal process Tertiary ( ) Quaternary (<0.05) Energy intensity (kwh per 1000m 3 ) Cost per kg of P removed 400-3,000 (+secondary) $45,000 1,500-2,000 (+tertiary) $100,000 Stormwater Retrofits low/negligible $990 - $1,700 Agriculture BMPs low/negligible $4 - $720 Source: See Every Drop Counts, Fig. 7.1 & Fig Ontario success: South Nation Conservation Authority offsetting program 48

49 ECO Recommendation The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change should implement phosphorus reduction programs that reduce loadings to sensitive surface waters, in a way that minimizes the energy use, financial costs and GHG emissions needed to achieve reductions.

50 8: Biogas 50

51 What is biogas? 51

52 What can biogas power? Source: Wessex Water/Julian James Photography. Vehicles (e.g., Hamilton), buildings (e.g., wastewater treatment plants, your home!) 52

53 Obstacles to WWTP energy recovery Environmental approvals Ontario success: Hamilton biogas clean-up and injection into the gas grid Uncertainty about financial value of renewable natural gas OEB framework in development Insufficient scale Can co-digestion help? (e.g., Stratford) Source: City of Hamilton 53

54 Capturing Ontario s biogas potential 54 Source: Enbridge Gas Distribution (2011)13.

55 ECO Recommendation The Ministry of Infrastructure should make anaerobic digestion and energy recovery technology eligible for water/wastewater infrastructure funding.

56 ECO Recommendation The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change should, without reducing environmental protection, simplify the regulatory approvals process for energy recovery systems associated with anaerobic digestion at wastewater treatment plants, including systems that co-digest off-site organics.

57 ECO Recommendation The Ontario Energy Board should set a renewable natural gas content requirement and cost recovery criteria for gas utilities.

58 A special thanks To all 110 municipalities that completed our water-energy efficiency survey: representing 70% of ON population served by municipal systems See Appendix A of EDC To municipalities, government bodies, associations, academics and industry who contributed through consultation and peer review (full list on p.2 of report) 58

59 Questions? Contact us: re: Follow-up comments, printed copies of reports, outreach requests, etc. eco.on.ca/reports/2017-every-drop-counts/