AWE President Testifies Before U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources
On June 25, AWE President and CEO Mary Ann Dickinson testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources. The purpose of the hearing was to hear testimony on S.1971, the "Nexus of Energy and Water for Sustainability Act of 2014." AWE provided testimony along with the Department of Energy, Department of the Interior, Congressional Research Service, and The Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
Mary Ann's testimony was based on the fact that the passage of S.1971 will be a critically important first step in promoting better joint management of water and energy at the federal level, and that S.1971 will serve as the perfect vehicle for obtaining on a national basis how much water is needed (or "embedded") in the generation of electricity and how much energy is needed (or “embedded”) in drinking water pumping and treatment as well as waste water treatment.
Mary Ann concluded by making three basic points:
- Water efficiency is successfully saving the nation’s water and energy resources and helping to defer expensive new capacity infrastructure.
- Saving water, saves energy--and the benefits are documentable.
- Research should be undertaken to examine the energy and water benefits from integrated approaches at the local level.