Global warming's effects on water availability could hamper electricity production at power plants worldwide in the coming decades.

Credit: Paul Nicklen/National Geographic Creative

Michelle van Vliet of Wageningen University in the Netherlands and her colleagues modelled electricity production throughout the twenty-first century at more than 24,000 hydroelectric facilities and at about 1,400 water-cooled thermoelectric plants powered by natural gas, coal or nuclear energy. Decreased stream flow and warmer water temperatures reduced electricity production at mid-latitudes, where most of the world's electricity is generated. Annual usable power capacity decreased by 7–12% for thermoelectric plants and by 1.2–3.6% for hydroelectric plants in the 2050s.

The authors suggest that boosting the efficiency of power plants, along with other adaptation measures, could reduce these impacts.

Nature Clim. Change http://doi.org/bbsp (2016)