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Resource Use

Water Resource UseElectricity generation generally involves the consumption of water resources (e.g., for steam production and cooling, equipment cleaning, and other purposes). The waterconsumption and the environmental impacts of water use vary from technology totechnology, as described below.Natural Gas The burning of natural gas in combustion turbines requires very little water. However, 

natural gas-fired boiler and combined cycle systems do require water for cooling purposes. 

When power plants remove water from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be killed, affecting animals and people who depend on these aquatic resources.

CoalLarge quantities of water are frequently needed to remove impurities from coal at the mine. In addition, coa

use large quantities of water for producing steam and for cooling. When coal-fired power plants remove watriver, fish and other aquatic life can be affected, as well as animals and people who depend on these aquati

OilOil-fired power plants use large quantities of water for steam production and cooling. When oil-fired power p

from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be killed, which affects those animals and people who deaquatic resources.In addition, the drilling of oil requires water to remove obstructions from the well, and refineries require wa

processes used to refine crude oil into usable fuel.

Various 

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Nuclear Energy 

Nuclear power plants use large quantities of water for steam production and for cooling. When nuclear powewater from a lake or river for steam production and cooling, fish and other aquatic life can be affected. Municipal Solid Waste Power plants that burn MSW are normally smaller than fossil fuel power plants but typically require a simila

unit of electricity generated. When water is removed from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be 

animals and people who depend on these resources.HydroelectricityHydropower often requires the use of dams, which can greatly affect the flow of rivers, altering ecosystems 

wildlife and people who depend on those waters. Often, water at the bottom of the lake created by a dam is inhospitable to fish because it is much colder and 

compared with water at the top. When this colder, oxygen-poor water is released into the river, it can kill fis

that are accustomed to warmer, oxygen-rich water.In addition, some dams withhold water and then release it all at once, causing the river downstream to suddaction can disrupt plant and wildlife habitats and affect drinking water supplies. 

Non-Hydroelectric Renewable EnergySolarPhotovoltaic systems do not require the use of any water to create electricity. Solar-thermal technologies mresources if the liquid that is being heated to create steam is water. In this case, the water can be re-used a

condensed from steam back into water.

GeothermalGeothermal power plants usually re-inject the hot water that they remove from the ground back into wells. amount of water used by geothermal plants in the process of creating electricity may evaporate and therefo

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the ground. Also, for those geothermal plants that rely on hot, dry rocks for energy, water from local resour

extract the energy from the dry rocks.

BiomassBiomass power plants require the use of water, because the boilers burning the biomass need water for stea

cooling. If this water is used over and over again, the amount of water needed is reduced. Whenever any tyremoves water from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be killed, which then affects those anima

depend on these aquatic resources.

Landfill GasEngines or combustion turbines that burn landfill gas to produce energy typically require negligible amounts WindWind turbines in areas with little rainfall may require the use of a small amount of water. If rainfall is not suturbine blades clean, water is used to clean dirt and insects off the blades so that turbine performance is no

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