Publication - March 22, 2016
This report for the first time evaluates and
discloses the severe global impacts that our
continuing reliance on coal-fired power is having
on the world’s fresh water resources.
Water is essential for all life on earth and plays a central
role in human development: from sanitation and
health, to food and energy production, to industrial
activities and economic development. However, human
activities are depleting our planet’s water resources at
an alarming rate.
The Great Water Grab report
The whole lifecycle of coal-generated electricity has enormous impacts on freshwater systems, from mining and washing to combustion and combustion waste management. A 500 MW coal-fired power plant, using once through cooling, can withdraw enough water to suck dry an Olympic-sized swimming pool roughly every three minutes. In many countries, the coal industry creates one of the largest demands on freshwater resources.