Energy for Sustainable Society

12Energy and Sustainable Development

Statue of famous American folk song writer Woody Guthrie in front of the Grand Coulee Dam on Columbia River in Washington State, USA. Grand Coulee is a multipurpose project for regulation of river flow, flood control, electric generation, and irrigation water for farmlands. Three power stations with total nameplate capacity of 6809 MW is the largest power plant in the US. The pumped storage hydroelectric power plant supports economic development in the region by generating electric energy as well as providing water for agricultural irrigation.

Source: © H&O Soysal

12.1 Introduction

Current state and progress of communities rely on productive use of natural resources. Food and water supply, industrial production, construction of infrastructure, operation of all equipment, and transportation involve use of abundant energy. Deployment of energy sources, on the other hand, interacts with availability of fresh water, clean air, fertile soils, and biodiversity; vital elements for sustainable development.

Energy systems are not isolated from the rest of the world. In fact, energy is the essential part of nature. Energy systems use diverse natural resources as primary energy sources. Energy use, on the other hand, impacts natural resources in many ways. Evidently, consumption of conventional energy sources at the current rate depletes hydrocarbon ...