IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/renene/v162y2020icp754-765.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Expert opinion on influential factors driving renewable energy adoption in the water industry

Author

Listed:
  • Strazzabosco, A.
  • Conrad, S.A.
  • Lant, P.A.
  • Kenway, S.J.

Abstract

Interest in renewable energy adoption in the water industry is growing amid numerous barriers. Overcoming these barriers requires an understanding of the influencing factors that drive renewable energy adoption, namely i) what drives the industry to uptake renewable energy projects, ii) what policies and regulations are perceived by the industry as effective in supporting this trend, and iii) what renewable energy technologies are preferred. To identify influencing factors, a survey was conducted of Australian professionals working in water and wastewater related fields. Reducing costs associated with energy consumption were perceived as the most significant factors influencing renewable energy projects. Respondents perceived compulsory greenhouse gas emissions reduction as the most influential policy. Respondents did not perceive any government financial policy or regulation established for the development of a renewable energy market as highly influential for the water industry. Among all respondents, biogas from sewage sludge and solar photovoltaic were considered the most important technologies available to the industry. Yet, the priority of these technologies differed between respondents working for water/wastewater utilities and the rest of respondents, as the former perceived biogas from co-digestion as the most important technology, while the rest perceived solar PV as the dominant technology.

Suggested Citation

  • Strazzabosco, A. & Conrad, S.A. & Lant, P.A. & Kenway, S.J., 2020. "Expert opinion on influential factors driving renewable energy adoption in the water industry," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 754-765.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:162:y:2020:i:c:p:754-765
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2020.08.054
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960148120312970
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.renene.2020.08.054?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Catenacci, Michela & Verdolini, Elena & Bosetti, Valentina & Fiorese, Giulia, 2013. "Going electric: Expert survey on the future of battery technologies for electric vehicles," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 403-413.
    2. Masini, Andrea & Menichetti, Emanuela, 2012. "The impact of behavioural factors in the renewable energy investment decision making process: Conceptual framework and empirical findings," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 28-38.
    3. Valentina Bosetti & Michela Catenacci & Giulia Fiorese & Elena Verdolini, 2012. "The Future Prospects of PV and CSP Solar Technologies," Review of Environment, Energy and Economics - Re3, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei, January.
    4. Bosetti, Valentina & Catenacci, Michela & Fiorese, Giulia & Verdolini, Elena, 2012. "The future prospect of PV and CSP solar technologies: An expert elicitation survey," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 308-317.
    5. Gu, Yifan & Li, Yue & Li, Xuyao & Luo, Pengzhou & Wang, Hongtao & Robinson, Zoe P. & Wang, Xin & Wu, Jiang & Li, Fengting, 2017. "The feasibility and challenges of energy self-sufficient wastewater treatment plants," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 1463-1475.
    6. Nghiem, Long D. & Koch, Konrad & Bolzonella, David & Drewes, Jörg E., 2017. "Full scale co-digestion of wastewater sludge and food waste: Bottlenecks and possibilities," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 354-362.
    7. Shen, Yanwen & Linville, Jessica L. & Urgun-Demirtas, Meltem & Mintz, Marianne M. & Snyder, Seth W., 2015. "An overview of biogas production and utilization at full-scale wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the United States: Challenges and opportunities towards energy-neutral WWTPs," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 346-362.
    8. Roe, Brian & Teisl, Mario F. & Levy, Alan & Russell, Matthew, 2001. "US consumers' willingness to pay for green electricity," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 29(11), pages 917-925, September.
    9. Alam Hossain Mondal, Md. & Kamp, Linda M. & Pachova, Nevelina I., 2010. "Drivers, barriers, and strategies for implementation of renewable energy technologies in rural areas in Bangladesh--An innovation system analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(8), pages 4626-4634, August.
    10. Marques, António Cardoso & Fuinhas, José Alberto, 2011. "Drivers promoting renewable energy: A dynamic panel approach," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 1601-1608, April.
    11. Xenias, Dimitrios & Axon, Colin J. & Whitmarsh, Lorraine & Connor, Peter M. & Balta-Ozkan, Nazmiye & Spence, Alexa, 2015. "UK smart grid development: An expert assessment of the benefits, pitfalls and functions," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 89-102.
    12. Dodd, Tracey & Orlitzky, Marc & Nelson, Tim, 2018. "What stalls a renewable energy industry? Industry outlook of the aviation biofuels industry in Australia, Germany, and the USA," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 92-103.
    13. Sardianou, E. & Genoudi, P., 2013. "Which factors affect the willingness of consumers to adopt renewable energies?," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 1-4.
    14. Andrea Masini & E. Menichetti, 2012. "The impact of behavioural factors in the renewable energy investment decision making process: Conceptual framework and empirical findings," Post-Print hal-00651706, HAL.
    15. Zheng-Xia He & Shi-Chun Xu & Qin-Bin Li & Bin Zhao, 2018. "Factors That Influence Renewable Energy Technological Innovation in China: A Dynamic Panel Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-30, January.
    16. Zahedi, A., 2010. "A review on feed-in tariff in Australia, what it is now and what it should be," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 14(9), pages 3252-3255, December.
    17. Kamp, Linda Manon & Bermúdez Forn, Esteban, 2016. "Ethiopia׳s emerging domestic biogas sector: Current status, bottlenecks and drivers," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 475-488.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Strazzabosco, A. & Kenway, S.J. & Conrad, S.A. & Lant, P.A., 2021. "Renewable electricity generation in the Australian water industry: Lessons learned and challenges for the future," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    2. Shi, Yingying & Wei, Zixiang & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Zeng, Yongchao, 2021. "Exploring the dynamics of low-carbon technology diffusion among enterprises: An evolutionary game model on a two-level heterogeneous social network," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    3. Rossi, Mosè & Spedaletti, Samuele & Lorenzetti, Matteo & Salvi, Danilo & Renzi, Massimiliano & Comodi, Gabriele & Caresana, Flavio & Pelagalli, Leonardo, 2021. "A methodology to estimate average flow rates in Water Supply Systems (WSSs) for energy recovery purposes through hydropower solutions," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 1101-1113.
    4. Kamali Saraji, Mahyar & Aliasgari, Elahe & Streimikiene, Dalia, 2023. "Assessment of the challenges to renewable energy technologies adoption in rural areas: A Fermatean CRITIC-VIKOR approach," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    5. Jabeen, Gul & Ahmad, Munir & Zhang, Qingyu, 2021. "Perceived critical factors affecting consumers’ intention to purchase renewable generation technologies: Rural-urban heterogeneity," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 218(C).
    6. Strazzabosco, A. & Gruenhagen, J.H. & Cox, S., 2022. "A review of renewable energy practices in the Australian mining industry," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 187(C), pages 135-143.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Strazzabosco, A. & Kenway, S.J. & Conrad, S.A. & Lant, P.A., 2021. "Renewable electricity generation in the Australian water industry: Lessons learned and challenges for the future," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    2. Bauwens, Thomas, 2019. "Analyzing the determinants of the size of investments by community renewable energy members: Findings and policy implications from Flanders," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 841-852.
    3. Baker, Erin & Bosetti, Valentina & Salo, Ahti, 2016. "Finding Common Ground when Experts Disagree: Belief Dominance over Portfolios of Alternatives," MITP: Mitigation, Innovation and Transformation Pathways 243147, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    4. Toka, Agorasti & Iakovou, Eleftherios & Vlachos, Dimitrios & Tsolakis, Naoum & Grigoriadou, Anastasia-Loukia, 2014. "Managing the diffusion of biomass in the residential energy sector: An illustrative real-world case study," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 56-69.
    5. Erin Baker & Olaitan Olaleye & Lara Aleluia Reis, 2015. "Decision Frameworks and the Investment in R&D," Working Papers 2015.42, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    6. Noel, Lance & Brodie, Joseph F. & Kempton, Willett & Archer, Cristina L. & Budischak, Cory, 2017. "Cost minimization of generation, storage, and new loads, comparing costs with and without externalities," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 189(C), pages 110-121.
    7. Soon, Jan-Jan & Ahmad, Siti-Aznor, 2015. "Willingly or grudgingly? A meta-analysis on the willingness-to-pay for renewable energy use," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 877-887.
    8. Elena Verdolini & Laura Díaz Anadón & Erin Baker & Valentina Bosetti & Lara Aleluia Reis, 2018. "Future Prospects for Energy Technologies: Insights from Expert Elicitations," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 12(1), pages 133-153.
    9. Macintosh, C. & Astals, S. & Sembera, C. & Ertl, A. & Drewes, J.E. & Jensen, P.D. & Koch, K., 2019. "Successful strategies for increasing energy self-sufficiency at Grüneck wastewater treatment plant in Germany by food waste co-digestion and improved aeration," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 242(C), pages 797-808.
    10. Salm, Sarah & Wüstenhagen, Rolf, 2018. "Dream team or strange bedfellows? Complementarities and differences between incumbent energy companies and institutional investors in Swiss hydropower," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 476-487.
    11. Baker, Erin & Bosetti, Valentina & Anadon, Laura Diaz & Henrion, Max & Aleluia Reis, Lara, 2015. "Future costs of key low-carbon energy technologies: Harmonization and aggregation of energy technology expert elicitation data," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 219-232.
    12. Kowalska-Pyzalska, Anna, 2018. "What makes consumers adopt to innovative energy services in the energy market? A review of incentives and barriers," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 82(P3), pages 3570-3581.
    13. Few, Sheridan & Schmidt, Oliver & Offer, Gregory J. & Brandon, Nigel & Nelson, Jenny & Gambhir, Ajay, 2018. "Prospective improvements in cost and cycle life of off-grid lithium-ion battery packs: An analysis informed by expert elicitations," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 578-590.
    14. Can Şener, Şerife Elif & Sharp, Julia L. & Anctil, Annick, 2018. "Factors impacting diverging paths of renewable energy: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P2), pages 2335-2342.
    15. Menyeh, Bridget Okyerebea, 2021. "Financing electricity access in Africa: A choice experiment study of household investor preferences for renewable energy investments in Ghana," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    16. Tsantopoulos, Georgios & Arabatzis, Garyfallos & Tampakis, Stilianos, 2014. "Public attitudes towards photovoltaic developments: Case study from Greece," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 94-106.
    17. Linnerud, Kristin & Holden, Erling, 2015. "Investment barriers under a renewable-electricity support scheme: Differences across investor types," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 699-709.
    18. Baker, Erin & Olaleye, Olaitan & Aleluia Reis, Lara, 2015. "Decision frameworks and the investment in R&D," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 275-285.
    19. Arnold, Uwe & Yildiz, Özgür, 2015. "Economic risk analysis of decentralized renewable energy infrastructures – A Monte Carlo Simulation approach," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 227-239.
    20. Hennessey, Ryan & Pittman, Jeremy & Morand, Annette & Douglas, Allan, 2017. "Co-benefits of integrating climate change adaptation and mitigation in the Canadian energy sector," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 214-221.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:162:y:2020:i:c:p:754-765. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/renewable-energy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.