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It's worth considering total lifecycle use of water (mining, production and operation) for nuclear and solar. Solar: ~300-800 L/MWh [0] Nuclear: ~3000 L/MWh [
by discordance 1y ago
It's worth considering total lifecycle use of water (mining, production and operation) for nuclear and solar.
Solar: ~300-800 L/MWh [0]
Nuclear: ~3000 L/MWh [1]
0: https://iea-pvps.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Water_Footprint_of_European_Rooftop_Photovoltaic_Electricity_based_in_Re-giornalised_Life_Cycle_Inventories_by_Task_12.pdf https://iea-pvps.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Water_Footpr...
1: https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/P1569_web.pdf https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/P1569_web.pdf
- bluefirebrand 1y agoWater we have plenty of. We can desalinate as much as we need to
- NewJazz 1y agoBuild subsurface wells and responsible brine dispersion infrastructure then come back and tell me we can desalinate as much as we need to.
- HPsquared 1y agoIf you put the brine back into the sea, and later put the waste water back into the same sea, doesn't it balance out? Also, the sea is pretty big.
- aredox 1y agoNuclear reactors regularly shut down because the water from the nearby river is already too hot. https://www.euronews.com/2025/07/02/france-and-switzerland-shut-down-nuclear-power-plants-amid-scorching-heatwave https://www.euronews.com/2025/07/02/france-and-switzerland-s...
- cbsmith 1y agoYeah, but you need energy to desalinate so...
- HPsquared 1y agoHow does it compare to ~3000 L/MWh? I assume it's a rounding error. edit: Desalination uses 4 kWh per cubic metre of water. That is, it would yield 250,000 L/MWh.
- davemp 1y agoThat’s not really useful information. The nice thing about water is that it’s usually still water after it’s “used”. The question how much is used for mining slurry or chemical baths. Those 3000L/MWh might very well be more environmentally friendly than solar because most of it’s used for cooling.