Duke University and Duke Kunshan University
2nd Water-Energy in China Workshop
October 14-15, 2015
Duke Kunshan University
Kunshan, China
Co-Chairs
Prof. Avner Vengosh
Duke University and Duke Kunshan University
Prof. Marc Deshusses
Duke University and Duke Kunshan University
Prof. Erika Weinthal
Duke University
Background
The rapid growth of unconventional energy exploration – that is, shale gas and tight sand oil – has the potential to transform water and energy economies globally. For China, the onset of unconventional shale gas exploration has the potential to alter China’s dependence on coal and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, unconventional shale gas exploration brings with it an array of environmental and regulatory challenges. In particular, unconventional energy exploration requires large amounts of water resources and generates high volumes of waste. The “Water-Energy Nexus in China” will highlight the scientific, environmental, engineering, and regulatory effects of linking water and energy. For China, the intricate relationship between water and energy will directly influence China’s economic trajectory over the next few decades.
Numerous scientific studies have shown that China’s current and future water demands are not balanced with its water availability; to remedy this imbalance, China has initiated a massive water transport project to divert water from the south to the arid north. Compounding China’s water shortages, the quality of water resources in China has been rapidly deteriorating, causing an additional (and typically unaccounted for) water deficit. Energy production in China relies heavily on coal, and despite efforts to reduce atmospheric emissions, coal combustion for electricity and industry production is still a major source of air pollution, posing major health risks to a large fraction of China population. Coal is also water-intensive, requiring large amounts of water for both its production and combustion.
Alternative energy sources for coal are unconventional oil and gas from shale gas and coalbed methane through the application of hydraulic fracturing. Since 2005, the United States has tripled its gas production and has become the leading country in petroleum and shale gas production owing to the use of hydraulic fracturing. Yet the rapid rise of unconventional energy exploration in the United States has triggered public concerns about the environmental and human health implications of this technology. One of the most debated issues concerns water contamination from leaking shale gas wells and inadequate management of the wastewater that is generated together with the oil and gas.
Objectives
The water-energy nexus workshop at Duke Kunshan University (DKU) will examine the scientific and policy implications of water and energy being so tightly linked. The absence of water and especially clean water can infringe upon a country’s energy security – that is, the ability to provide sufficient supplies of energy. Moreover, remediation of contaminated water (e.g., by reverse osmosis desalination) requires more energy and thus the development of innovative technologies for sustainable and economic treatment of contaminated water are urgently needed. The transition from coal to unconventional energy production such as hydraulic fracturing could furthermore result in additional sources of water contamination that could accelerate the depletion of water resources in China. In the United States about 80% of the oil and gas wastewater is subjected to deep injection to dispose of the highly toxic and saline water. Yet the massive injection of oil and gas wastewater has resulted in increased frequency of earthquakes in many areas. In China, particularly in the Sichuan Basin, wastewater injection would pose high risks for seismic catastrophes. As such, one of the major challenges for developing the shale gas and using hydraulic fracturing in China is the management and treatment of the oil and gas wastewater so as to take into concern the array of environmental and health externalities. China is at the initial stage of considering how to transition away from coal to unconventional energy resources. This workshop builds upon an earlier workshop at DKU on the water-energy nexus in November 2014 that presented the main challenges facing China as it begins to develop its unconventional energy resources. This workshop aims to generate lessons learned and recommendations for moving forward, based upon learning from other international experiences. In doing so, the workshop will present research and lessons learned for devising environmentally sensitive and appropriate tools and policies for mitigating the environmental effects of shale gas development and water utilization.
Program
The DKU Water Energy Workshop will take place on October 14-15, 2015. It will cover three aspects of the water-energy nexus:
- First, the workshop will survey the risks of oil and gas wastewater for water quality based on the US experience.
- Second, the workshop will present novel technologies for water treatment that could address the acute water quality issues in China, including the treatment of highly saline oil and gas wastewater. Topics will also include potential investment opportunities in novel technologies for water treatment.
- Third, the workshop will address the legal and regulatory policies that are needed to manage the water-energy nexus in order to provide a safe transition from coal to unconventional energy development in China. In particular, attention will be paid to the importance of linking water and energy regulations and policies.
The workshop will promote an intensive exchange of ideas, enhance collaboration, and pave the way for future research projects between the participants, Duke and DKU faculty and leading Chinese academic, government, and industry institutions.
*These invited speakers have indicated their interest, but have not yet confirmed their participation
Preliminary List of Speakers
- Prof. Jiane Zuo
Tsinghua University - Prof. Avner Vengosh
Duke University, USA
Water footprint and environmental impacts of unconventional energy production and hydraulic fracturing: lessons from United States. - Prof. Chao Zhang
School of Economics and Management, Tongji University
A detailed spatial analysis on the water stress of thermal power generation in China - Prof. Yongchun Zhao
State Key Laboratory of Coal Combustion, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan
Mercury and other contaminants emission and control during coal combustion in China - Dr. Qinhong Hu
University of Geosciences, Wuhan, and University of Texas at Arlington USA, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Sustainable shale resource development implicated from environmental and production-decline concerns: learning from American experience - Dr. Yunyan Ni
PetroChina Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, Beijing
Geochemical comparison of the natural gases from the largest tight gas field (Sulige) and the largest shale gas field (Fuling) in China - Prof. Marc Deshusses
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Duke University, USA
Waste treatment processes: Opportunities for energy generation or energy minimization - Dr. Sujie Qin
Department of Environmental Science, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
Impact of urbanization process on surface water quality related to pesticides in China - Dr. Alvin Lin
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), China office
Regulations of environmental impacts from shale gas development in China: Current status, gaps, and opportunities - Dr. Lei Tian
Energy Research Institute, Beijing, China
An overview on shale gas development in China - Prof. Erika Weinthal
Duke University
Water-energy nexus and security - Prof. Jun Xia
The Research Institute for Water Security (RIWS), Wuhan University
Climate change impact on water resources vulnerability and adaptive water management in major river basins in China - Prof. Huaming Guo
School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences
Naturally occurring contaminants (radioactivity, arsenic) in groundwater in China: impacts and implications. - Prof. Ori Lahav
Water Institute, Technion, Environmental, Water and Agricultural Engineering, Israel
Reducing the specific energy consumption of 1st-pass seawater RO by application of high-flux membranes fed with high-pH, decarbonated seawater - Prof. Tao He
Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Forward osmosis membranes for recovery of water from produced water in oil/gas industry - Prof. Jinying Xi
Division of Environmental Biology, Tsinghua University School of Environment
Reducing energy consumption for odor control at wastewater treatment plants - Prof. Xiaodi Hao
The R & D Centre for Sustainable Environmental Biotechnology, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture
Looking beyond struvite for P-recovery - Dr. Qingcheng He
China Geologic Survey, Beijing
Wastewater injection - a case study in China - Dr. Dan Guttman
NYU Shanghai and US Center, Tsinghua University
Environmental law in China
Photos in Forum
Travel and Logistic
Workshop Venue
Duke Kunshan University
No. 8 Duke Avenue, Kunshan, Jiangsu, China 215316
Tel: +86 512 5777 9988
www.dukekunshan.edu.cn
How to get to Duke Kunshan University
Bordering Shanghai to its east and Suzhou to its west, Duke Kunshan University is well connected to major cities in China and can be easily reached by air, car and train.
By Air | Pudong Airport | Take a Taxi - 100mins, Cost USD 65 |
Hongqiao Airport | Two options:
| |
By Car | From Shanghai | Highway G2 – Highway S5 Bacheng Exit – Turn left toward Bacheng – Turn left at Zuchongzhi Road, then left again at Chuan Shi Road. At Wuhan Daxue Road, turn right. The West Entrance to DKU is on your left |
From Suzhou | Highway G312 – To Bacheng Direction Exit, onto Gucheng Road. Turn right on Xiaolin Road then left onto Zuchongzhi Road. Turn right at Chuan Shi Road and right again at Wuhan Daxue Road. The West Entrance to DKU is on your left. | |
By Train | From Shanghai | High Speed Train to Kunshan South Station (20mins, Cost USD 5). Then either take a taxi to DKU (25mins, Cost USD 10) or take the free DKU Shuttle to DKU (25mins) |
From Beijing | High Speed Train to Kunshan South Station (5 hours 30mins, Cost USD 90) Then either take a taxi to DKU (25mins, Cost USD 10) or take the free DKU Shuttle to DKU (25mins) |
Taxi Driver Introduction Card
Click here to download taxi card with our address in Chinese
DKU Map
Click here to download a DKU campus map
Accomodation
The following hotels are providing special room rates for conference attendees. A shuttle bus will run between Swissotel Kunshan, Times Hotel and Duke Kunshan University (DKU) the conference to help you get to and from your hotel.
![]() | No. 387,Qianjingzhong Road, Kunshan, Jiangsu, China 215300 Tel: +86 512 5788 5788 Email:reservations.kunshan@swissotel.com Click here to download the reservation form |
![]() | Times Hotel No. 105, Boshi Road, Kunshan, Jiangsu, China 215300 Tel: +86 512 5703 6888 Email:sdbg2012@126.com Click here to download the reservation form |
![]() | No. 3668 West Ma'anshan Road, Kunshan, Jiangsu, China 215300 Tel: +86 512 5780 0888 Email: reservation.kun@fairmont.com Click here to download the reservation form |
SHUTTLE SCHEDULE
A shuttle bus will depart from Kunshan South Train Station, Swissotel Kunshan, and Times Hotel to Duke Kunshan University (DKU) on October 14th & 15th help attendees to attend the workshop.
Kunshan South Station | Swissotel | Times Hotel | |
14 - Oct | 08:15 | 08:00 | 08:30 |
15 - Oct | 08:15 | 08:00 | 08:30 |
A shuttle bus will depart from Duke Kunshan University (DKU) to Kunshan South Train Station, Swissotel Kunshan, and Times Hotel on October 14th & 15th to help attendees to back to two hotels and Kunshan South Station
| Kunshan South Station | Swissotel Kunshan | Times Hotel |
14 - Oct | 18:30 | 18:30 | 18:30 |
15 - Oct | 15:30 | 15:30 | 15:30 |
For attendees who plan to stay at the Fairmont Yangcheng Lake please contact the hotel concierge to arrange your own transportation to attend the workshop.