498
control their energy consumption by choosing to: drive highly efficient vehicles, use
carpools or mass transportation, bike, and/or walk. Energy consumption can be
reduced by enjoying the recreational amenities of local lakes and rivers and coasts,
rather than traveling to distant sites. Residents can retrofit their residences to reduce
energy requirements for heating and cooling, installing cool roofs and vegetation in
the yard to reduce the need for air conditioning (also sequestering carbon, to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions). Rooftop solar electric and solar thermal both
reduce the need for air conditioning and generate energy with no carbon emissions.
Backyard wind energy is now feasible for individuals. All of these are ways of
maintaining the flow of critical energy while reducing one’s footprint. As noted,
they vary in their affordability and their impact on infrastructure. One factor justifying the household expense of installing the means for alternative energy production
is the amount of money that the local electric utility pays for electricity fed into the
grid; this is largely determined by the private sector with some influence from the
government and civil society (policy).
18.2.5.4 FEW Systems
To illustrate the urban FEW nexus, the model individual walks or rides a community
bicycle to the river that runs through the city and catches a fish that s/he takes home
and cooks for dinner using photovoltaic energy. The exemplary urban farm provides
a porous land surface and water storage cistern to receive wastewater from the food
processing facility, and the wet and solid waste from the food processing plant provides a source of nutrients for the farm. The substitution of these water and nutrient
sources for more energy-intensive municipal water supply and commercial fertilizer
by the farm, and the reduction in energy demand for wastewater treatment by the
processing facility, both provide benefits for energy and water security; as does the
location of food production close to the urban population for food security. At the
same time, the open area provided by urban farms may offer opportunities for siting
wind energy generators and solar energy collectors.
18.3 Urban FEW Supply Chain Management
Various projections of demand for food, energy, and water to sustain a projected
nine billion people globally by 2050—most of whom will reside in cities—include
increases of more than 50%, 60%, and 55% in these vital consumable resources,
respectively (the criticality criterion). Moreover, the sources of these essential
resources are inextricably and reciprocally linked as discussed at length in Chap. 2.
The increasing complexity of the FEW nexus requires a more sustainable approach
that allows for the co-management of these resources.
In this section, we will discuss how supply chains can be one approach for understanding and managing the FEW nexus in cities. We will first discuss the concepts
C. Harris et al.
control their energy consumption by choosing to: drive highly efficient vehicles, use
carpools or mass transportation, bike, and/or walk. Energy consumption can be
reduced by enjoying the recreational amenities of local lakes and rivers and coasts,
rather than traveling to distant sites. Residents can retrofit their residences to reduce
energy requirements for heating and cooling, installing cool roofs and vegetation in
the yard to reduce the need for air conditioning (also sequestering carbon, to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions). Rooftop solar electric and solar thermal both
reduce the need for air conditioning and generate energy with no carbon emissions.
Backyard wind energy is now feasible for individuals. All of these are ways of
maintaining the flow of critical energy while reducing one’s footprint. As noted,
they vary in their affordability and their impact on infrastructure. One factor justifying the household expense of installing the means for alternative energy production
is the amount of money that the local electric utility pays for electricity fed into the
grid; this is largely determined by the private sector with some influence from the
government and civil society (policy).
18.2.5.4 FEW Systems
To illustrate the urban FEW nexus, the model individual walks or rides a community
bicycle to the river that runs through the city and catches a fish that s/he takes home
and cooks for dinner using photovoltaic energy. The exemplary urban farm provides
a porous land surface and water storage cistern to receive wastewater from the food
processing facility, and the wet and solid waste from the food processing plant provides a source of nutrients for the farm. The substitution of these water and nutrient
sources for more energy-intensive municipal water supply and commercial fertilizer
by the farm, and the reduction in energy demand for wastewater treatment by the
processing facility, both provide benefits for energy and water security; as does the
location of food production close to the urban population for food security. At the
same time, the open area provided by urban farms may offer opportunities for siting
wind energy generators and solar energy collectors.
18.3 Urban FEW Supply Chain Management
Various projections of demand for food, energy, and water to sustain a projected
nine billion people globally by 2050—most of whom will reside in cities—include
increases of more than 50%, 60%, and 55% in these vital consumable resources,
respectively (the criticality criterion). Moreover, the sources of these essential
resources are inextricably and reciprocally linked as discussed at length in Chap. 2.
The increasing complexity of the FEW nexus requires a more sustainable approach
that allows for the co-management of these resources.
In this section, we will discuss how supply chains can be one approach for understanding and managing the FEW nexus in cities. We will first discuss the concepts
C. Harris et al.