Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change

The report examines the deep links between California's water and energy sectors, noting that water services account for approximately 20% of electricity and 30% of natural gas consumption, while hydropower provides an average of 15% of electricity. Using WEAP and LEAP modeling, the study finds that water conservation and potable reuse can reduce energy demands and costs, whereas desalination increases them. To achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, the report emphasizes the necessity of massive growth in solar, wind, and energy storage, alongside the continued role of low-cost hydropower. It also warns that federal policy interference could increase electricity production costs by $23 billion and raise CO2 emissions by 16% compared to the state's policy baseline.

• California's water and energy sectors are highly interdependent; the water sector consumes roughly 20% of the state's electricity and 30% of its natural gas, while hydropower typically generates 15% of the state's electricity.
• Integrated modeling indicates that water conservation and potable reuse are effective strategies for reducing energy costs and emissions. Specifically, a water reuse scenario could decrease energy demands by 2 TWh/year and save $2 billion in electricity production costs compared to the policy baseline.
• Desalination is identified as a more energy-intensive alternative to water reuse, leading to an increase in overall energy demands by 1.45 TWh/year and a $2 billion increase in cumulative electricity production costs relative to the policy baseline.
• Achieving carbon neutrality in California requires significant expansion of solar, wind, and energy storage. The report suggests that utility solar PV growth may need to increase to 4.5 GW annually to meet baseline projections of 155 GW by 2050.
• The loss of large-scale hydropower would significantly increase the cost of meeting clean energy goals, adding approximately $31 billion in cumulative discounted electricity production costs through 2050 due to a shift toward higher-cost wind and storage.
• Federal interference with California's emissions and fuel economy standards could result in a 16% increase in carbon dioxide emissions (54 million metric tons) and increase electricity production costs by approximately $23 billion compared to the policy baseline.

APA

Huber-Lee, A., Ghosh, E., Veysey, J., & Joyce, B. (2020). Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/water-and-energy-in-california-planning-for-a-sustainable-future.pdf

Chicago

Huber-Lee, Annette, Emily Ghosh, Jason Veysey, and Brian Joyce. Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2020. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/water-and-energy-in-california-planning-for-a-sustainable-future.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Huber-Lee |first1=Annette |last2=Ghosh |first2=Emily |last3=Veysey |first3=Jason |last4=Joyce |first4=Brian |title=Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=February 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/water-and-energy-in-california-planning-for-a-sustainable-future.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{huberlee2020water, author = {Huber-Lee, Annette and Ghosh, Emily and Veysey, Jason and Joyce, Brian}, title = {{Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = feb, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/water-and-energy-in-california-planning-for-a-sustainable-future.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }