A Preliminary Estimation on Carbon Footprint of Raw Water from the Reservoirs for Domestic Use in Taiwan

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the carbon footprint of raw water from reservoirs for domestic use in Taiwan. It also provides a preliminary measure and reference database for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission of reservoir systems in Taiwan. Four reservoirs, Feitsui (F.T.) and Liyutan (L.Y.T.) in subtropical zone and Nanhua (N.H.) and Tsengwen (T.W.) in tropical zone, were selected as the cases to be examined for carbon footprint inventory, including the GHG emission from the water body and from human activities. Carbon footprint inventory followed PAS 2050 (2011 Specification for the assessment of the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of goods and services). GHG emission from water body followed the instruction of UNESCO guidelines. The boundary of this inventory covers the water intake works, impoundment region, the dam, the affiliated hydroelectricity power plant, the administration center and other facilities. In this study, the floating chambers with gas chromatography (GC) were chosen to measure the GHG flux from the water body. For the emission of CH4 and N2O from the water body, there are no significantly difference between the fluxes during the daytime and nighttime. For carbon dioxide, the instantaneous flux during the nighttime is higher than the daytime flux. The two reservoirs in tropical zone emit more CO2e from the water body than those in subtropical zone. Summarizing the direct and indirect GHG emission, for the four reservoirs, the annual emission quantities ranged from 653 ton of CO2e to 23,146 ton of CO2e. The carbon footprint of water supply for domestic use ranged from 0.002 kg CO2e/m3 to 0.028 kg CO2e/m3. Roughly speaking, the total GHG emission quantity of the 24 main reservoirs in Taiwan was estimated to be around 121,800 ton of CO2e with the total yield of 4.35 billion m3 of water annually using the highest carbon footprint 0.028 kg CO2e/m3.