ABSTRACT
Water is required at various stages to extract and process fuel for coal power plants, which includes coal extraction (mining), preparation and transportation. Water is used mainly for washing, cooling, slurry transportation and other activities. China is the world’s largest coal producer, producing roughly 45% of the global total, and also the largest coal consumer, consuming more coal than the rest of the world combined. Over 50% of China’s coal consumption is used to produce electricity. The challenges at the interface of coal utilization and water resources management are highlighted by the location of an estimated 71% of China’s coal resources in four water-scarce arid and semi-arid regions of northern China that account for only 13% of total water resources, where water scarcity has become a constraining factor for the continuing development of coal. Possible responses to the unsustainable use of water include increasing the recycling of coal mine drainage, adopting dry methods for coal preparation and transporting coal with trains instead of slurry.
