20 Power Plant Open Cooling System in the Context of the Objectives …
413
electricity generation cost, pollutant emissions will also be higher as more fuel will
be burned. For example, the increase in emissions of selected pollutants is estimated
as follows: 28,500 Mg/year for CO 2 , 110 Mg/year for SO 2 , 57 Mg/year for NO X ,
and 4 Mg/year for total inhalable dust. The increase in pollutant emissions was
determined on the basis of actual data on emissions and fuel consumption at the
power plant in question. Therefore, this solution will bring neither economic nor
environmental benefits.
20.4 Conclusions
RBMPs were first developed in Poland in 2009 as a result of WFD requirements, and
they were approved in 2011. In December 2014, a public consultation was announced
on updated RBMPs and the national water and environmental programme, which
was concluded by issuing the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 18 October
2016 [18]. RBMPs are updated every six years. It should be stressed that once they
are approved by the Council of Ministers, they constitute the strategy paper which
provides the basis for:
• Making decisions which determine the status of water resources;
• Improving the process for achieving or maintaining the good status of waters and
the related ecosystems;
• Determining the need to introduce rational water management principles in the
future.
The WFD allows for derogations from the achievement of environmental objectives for bodies of surface water, including (1) the extension of the deadline for
achieving the objective (Article 4(4) WFD); (2) a failure to achieve the objective as
a result of new sustainable human development activities (Article 4(7)). The current
updated RBMP analyses and identifies pressures on surface bodies of water and
groundwater bodies within the Vistula River basin district, which include, inter alia,
wastewater discharges into, and sourcing water from, those water bodies.
Under Polish conditions, conventional coal or lignite-fired power plants operate
within the NPG and generate electricity continuously. Their electricity generation
potential contributes to the stability of local power grid nodes and contributes to
maintaining the secure operation of the NPG. In addition to the combined generation
of electricity and heat, these power plants are often suppliers of process steam for
many enterprises. The cooling solutions used involve both closed and open cooling
systems. In the case of the latter, the impact of conventional power plants on surface
waters is usually limited to an increase in their temperature by several degrees Celsius.
However, each case is different, and multiple aspects related to the water environment
must be accounted for. This analysis should be conducted in order to show all the
pros and cons of the solutions considered in order to meet the applicable formal and
legal requirements.
413
electricity generation cost, pollutant emissions will also be higher as more fuel will
be burned. For example, the increase in emissions of selected pollutants is estimated
as follows: 28,500 Mg/year for CO 2 , 110 Mg/year for SO 2 , 57 Mg/year for NO X ,
and 4 Mg/year for total inhalable dust. The increase in pollutant emissions was
determined on the basis of actual data on emissions and fuel consumption at the
power plant in question. Therefore, this solution will bring neither economic nor
environmental benefits.
20.4 Conclusions
RBMPs were first developed in Poland in 2009 as a result of WFD requirements, and
they were approved in 2011. In December 2014, a public consultation was announced
on updated RBMPs and the national water and environmental programme, which
was concluded by issuing the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 18 October
2016 [18]. RBMPs are updated every six years. It should be stressed that once they
are approved by the Council of Ministers, they constitute the strategy paper which
provides the basis for:
• Making decisions which determine the status of water resources;
• Improving the process for achieving or maintaining the good status of waters and
the related ecosystems;
• Determining the need to introduce rational water management principles in the
future.
The WFD allows for derogations from the achievement of environmental objectives for bodies of surface water, including (1) the extension of the deadline for
achieving the objective (Article 4(4) WFD); (2) a failure to achieve the objective as
a result of new sustainable human development activities (Article 4(7)). The current
updated RBMP analyses and identifies pressures on surface bodies of water and
groundwater bodies within the Vistula River basin district, which include, inter alia,
wastewater discharges into, and sourcing water from, those water bodies.
Under Polish conditions, conventional coal or lignite-fired power plants operate
within the NPG and generate electricity continuously. Their electricity generation
potential contributes to the stability of local power grid nodes and contributes to
maintaining the secure operation of the NPG. In addition to the combined generation
of electricity and heat, these power plants are often suppliers of process steam for
many enterprises. The cooling solutions used involve both closed and open cooling
systems. In the case of the latter, the impact of conventional power plants on surface
waters is usually limited to an increase in their temperature by several degrees Celsius.
However, each case is different, and multiple aspects related to the water environment
must be accounted for. This analysis should be conducted in order to show all the
pros and cons of the solutions considered in order to meet the applicable formal and
legal requirements.