Energy efficiency is big on the agenda of clean-water plant teams. Pursuing the ideal of resource recovery, they’re making changes that save electricity and fuel, and in some cases striving for energy self-sufficiency.But in the grand scheme, exactly how big is the energy savings opportunity? A 2015 study conducted by Xylem lends perspective. The company’s Powering the Wastewater Renaissance report estimates that plants in the United States, Europe and China could save $40 billion per year through the adoption of high-efficiency technologies. This would eliminate nearly half of those plants’ electricity-related emissions, preventing an amount of greenhouse gas emissions equivalent
