Technology Assessment Reports

Date:

January 2003

Title:

TA 25 - A Life Cycle Assessment of the NSW Electricity Grid

Type:

Technology Assessments Report

Author(s):

A. Cottrell, J. Nunn, A. Urfer, L. Wibberley, P. Scaife

This is one report in a series of life cycle analysis (LCA) studies of the Australian State electricity grids which are being undertaken to provide benchmarks for similar assessment of future Australian grids. The LCA has been carried out to determine the environmental impacts of power generation, transmission and distribution in New South Wales (Australia’s largest state with a generation capacity of 13,000 MW). The analysis takes into account power supplied from the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Authority (SMHEA), but does not include interstate transfers.

The study aims to provide a transparent methodology and significantly more detail on the NSW electricity grid than previous studies, which tend to focus solely on greenhouse gas emissions. The study includes a range of key performance indicators including resource energy and fresh water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions (GGEs), NOx, SOx, particulates and solid waste emissions. Also included are a range of substances sourced from the National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) database.

LCA-NSWgrid

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