Water consumption by the energy industry in the Netherlands, 1976-1996
| Total | Groundwater | Surface water | Drinking water | ||||||
| total | of which for | total | of which for | total | of which for | ||||
| cooling | cooling | cooling | |||||||
| million m3 | |||||||||
| 1976 | 8 590 | 4 | 2 | 8 584 | 8 530 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1981 | 10 097 | 2 | 1 | 10 093 | 10 077 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1986 | 9 203 | 1 | 0 | 9 200 | 9 190 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1991 | 8 392 | 2 | 0 | 8 387 | 8 383 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1996 | 6 199 | 1 | 0 | 6 194 | 6 170 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Source: CBS. | CBS/EDC/Oct02 | ||||||||
Fall in cooling water consumption
Water consumption by energy companies has fallen by almost 40% since 1981 as a result of more efficient use of cooling water. Most of the water consumed by far is surface water. The target sector does not play any role in the Desiccation theme. Furthermore, more than half of the cooling water is taken from marine waters. Virtually all of the cooling water that is taken in is discharged again.
Impact
During warmer periods, the discharge of cooling water can raise the temperature of surface water to excessive levels. This can result in oxygen concentrations that are too low, with a negative impact on fish numbers. The aquatic environment can also suffer from the fact that cooling-water additives are also discharged in cooling water. Cooling-water additives are biocides (used to stop mussel growth, for example), anticorrosion agents and agents for preventing deposits in cooling-water systems.
