ACHIEVING WATER BALANCE: “The key concerns between the water and energy industries are the same; and the issues are similar. One difference is that the energy industry tackled demand management much sooner than the water industry,” stated Dr. Bob Wilkinson, University of California, when he introduced the Water / Energy Nexus concept at the workshop that launched the Convening for Action in British Columbia initiative (April 2005)
“We get energy from water, and we use energy to supply, treat and use water. Water use involves significant energy inputs which must be considered,” stated Dr. Bob Wilkinson. In 2002, the BC Water Sustainability Committee foreshadowed rainwater harvesting in British Columbia. Within three years later, “rainwater harvesting” had become part of the language. Similarly, in 2005 the Water Sustainability Action Plan introduced the “water/energy nexus” at the “Water OUT = Water IN” workshop in anticipation that it too would be part of the language of practitioners within a couple of years.
