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“A challenge to sustainability: water versus energy” probed at Promon Institute of Technology’s third seminar
Release: 06/20/2008
Experts from Brazil and other countries exchanged research findings and information on new technology at a June 18 seminar
On June 18, 2008, the Promon Institute of Technology (ITP) held its third seminar. The topic was “A challenge to sustainability: water versus energy”. ITP was launched in April 2007 to promote impartial analysis and discussion of emerging technologies that will “make a difference” in strategic sectors, and to develop talent in the areas on which it focuses: energy, sustainable development, and information and communications technology (ICT).
The event was attended by some 120 company directors, investors and researchers from all parts of Brazil. Brazilian and foreign experts delivered lectures and presented new research findings and information about technologies developed in this area.
“The seminar focused on the interdependence between water and energy, two elements that are at risk. It’s important to discuss what action can be taken today and what are the prospects for the future. This is ITP’s role. We will continue to foster the debate on issues of importance to society,” said Ricardo Corrêa, director of ITP.
The seminar began with a presentation on “Water Resource Conservation: Challenges and Prospects” by Dr. Jörg Imberger, Chair of Australia’s Center for Water Research. Highlighting the impacts on hydrographic cycles and the environment caused by rising demand for water to produce electricity, in competition with the needs of other economic sectors, Imberg noted the importance of new technologies and quantitative methods developed for water resource management to pursue a balance between the uses of these resources and their environmental impact. “Human beings make mistakes but are reluctant to learn from those mistakes. Machines, however, learn constantly from their mistakes and evolve,” he said. “When the unveiling of a new pulp and paper mill in a particular place is announced, for example, the first impression is always negative. This is because of the preconceived ideas that are widely held by society. So there needs to be a channel for communication with the community to enable people to understand what is being developed. In this sense, the internet is a fundamental technology.”
The second presentation was delivered by Dr. José Goldemberg, a research fellow at the University of São Paulo’s National Biomass Reference Center (Cenbio). Goldemberg spoke about the technological prospects for minimizing water use in power generation and its replacement by biomass for environmental conservation. Comparing the situation in Brazil and the rest of the world with regard to water availability and use, he warned that “improper use of water resources can have dramatic consequences for the population”. He also presented a balance sheet of water production in São Paulo State and the growth of demand for water in the region. “The situation in this region is not as comfortable as the situation in Brazil compared with the rest of the world,” he said. “In 2000, water consumption corresponded to 47% of the available supply in this state. Urban areas account for a significant proportion of total consumption. Water has to be transported from increasingly distant places to supply a city like São Paulo, for example, and this involves serious problems.” Goldemberg then turned to ethanol production and co-generation of electricity from sugarcane in Brazil, analyzing the volume of water impounded, consumed and discharged by the sugar and alcohol industry. “For every liter of ethanol produced, for example, the industry uses 10 liters of water on average. Sugarcane growing, in turn, consumes 1 cubic meter of water for every tonne produced. Serious work must be done to reduce water use in the production of sugarcane,” he said.
The third speaker, Cláudio Barbosa, a senior technologist at the Brazilian Space Research Institute (INPE), explained how remote sensing systems are used to track water use and its environmental impact. Barbosa stressed the importance of such systems, based on satellites and terrestrial networks, in effective water resource management on a local, regional and global scale. “Aquatic environments are highly dynamic and undergo significant change in a very short time, days or even hours. The satellites available now can be used for multitemporal monitoring of large remote areas, enabling the data to be collected faster and with greater accuracy,” he said.
The last presentation focused on the challenges and prospects of integrated water and power generation management. The speakers were Dr. Hermes Chipp, Director-General of the National Grid Operator (ONS), and Vinícius Forain Rocha, an ONS engineer. Rocha began with an overview of the national grid. “In planning grid operations our goal is to minimize the total cost of power generation today and in the future, via decisions regarding thermal and hydraulic generation. In this way we aim to guarantee a secure supply of electric power,” he said. Rocha concluded his portion of the presentation with examples of multiuse management of the grid, the process for managing hydraulic constraints, and relations with other institutions. Chipp then took over, discussing the possibility of integrated water-energy management to mitigate environmental impacts in the regional, state and federal spheres. “We need to take preventive action,” he said. “The procedures adopted by ONS represent an operating strategy that changes the Brazilian paradigm.”
About the Promon Institute of Technology (ITP) – www.itpromon.com.br
The Promon Institute of Technology (ITP) is a nonprofit set up to contribute to analysis and discussion of the technologies that will be decisive for energy, sustainable development, and information and communication technology (ICT) in the future, and to develop talent in these areas. It is committed to maintaining a position of neutrality and impartiality in all activities, and refrains from establishing commercial ties of any kind. To this end it cultivates relationships with centers of excellence in research and development both in Brazil and abroad.
About the Promon Group – www.promon.com.br
Founded in 1960, Promon is a Brazilian group recognized for its engineering and project management expertise coupled with strong entrepreneurial capacity. Its core business is the design, integration and implementation of complete infrastructure solutions for key economic sectors such as power, oil & gas, process industries, chemicals, petrochemicals, mining, metallurgy, and information and communications technology.
The organization’s activities are conducted mainly by three companies: Promon Engenharia, a wholly-owned subsidiary; PromonLogicalis, formed by a merger between Promon Tecnologia and the Latin American operations of the Logicalis Group; and Trópico, a joint venture with CPqD and Cisco Systems. The group also includes Fundação Promon de Previdência Social, Instituto de Tecnologia Promon, and Instituto Razão Social, a nonprofit maintained in association with Instituto Camargo Corrêa and Gerdau.
Promon has been recognized as one of the best places to work in Brazil by all twelve editions of the annual “Guia Exame-Você S.A. – As 150 Melhores Empresas para Você Trabalhar” and all twelve editions of the survey “As 100 Melhores Empresas para Você Trabalhar” by the Great Place to Work Institute and Época magazine. It has also figured since 2000 in the Exame Sustainability Guide published by Exame magazine, and in 2007 won the National Quality Prize awarded by Fundação Nacional da Qualidade. All these recognitions demonstrate the soundness of its management practices and the success of its business model.
Journalists requiring more information should contact:
A4 Comunicação
Priscilla Tavollassi – priscillatavollassi@a4com.com.br
Elton Frederick – eltonfrederick@a4com.com.br
Camila Silveira – camilasilveira@a4com.com.br
Tel: +55 11 3897 4122 / 7152 7689
www.a4com.com.br
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