Electricity generation from thermoelectric power plants is inextricably linked to water resources at nearly all stages in the power production cycle, yet this critical constraint has been largely overlooked in policy and planning.

This report describes the application of a new mixed-integer linear programming model of the power sector that accounts for water used for thermal cooling. The model is used to explore a series of scenarios for each of four case studies—the North Grid of China, India, France, and the state of Texas in the United States.

Four environmental dimensions of energy security—climate change, air pollution, water availability and quality, and land-use change—and the environmental impact of 13 energy systems on each are discussed in this paper.

This paper explores energy access, energy poverty, and energy development as energy security concerns confronting Asia and the Pacific. Improved access to energy services is arguably the key defining characteristic of economic development.