Universal Registration Document 2020

Water reuse and recycling

The recycling of process and cooling water is implemented throughout the Group, where appropriate:

• in order to reduce the impact on freshwater withdrawal, the possibilities of using water from WWTPs and rainwater as a source of complementary water are studied as early as the design stage of new nuclear reactors;
• the supply of part of the water from the heated cooling circuit of certain nuclear power plants for agricultural or industrial uses is authorised within the framework of specific regulatory requirements. An experiment is underway at the Golfech plant to reuse water from the secondary circuit;
• EDF’s thermal power plants in Cordemais and Martigues recover rainwater or recycle their effluents so as to reduce their consumption of tap water by half. In Dalkia’s large biomass combustion facilities, process wastewater is used to cool bottom ash to limit the volume of liquid effluent to be treated. The new R&D centre in Saclay uses rainwater recovery to supply 50% of toilet water of the site;
• in the UK, rainwater is recovered and reused on the Hinkley Point C construction site to eliminate site dust. At the West Burton Nuclear Power Plant (A), effluent from the wastewater treatment plant is no longer returned to the river but is now sent to the plant’s basins for reuse in the cooling towers. Each year, 100,000m³ of water is removed from the Trent River.
• in China, the Ultra-supercritical power plant of Fuzhou reuses all its process water sequentially and depending on the quality of water (from cooling to watering ash to gardens).

Desalinating sea water

EDF is carrying out several desalination trials on its sites:

• a desalination unit has been in operation since 2016 at Flamanville 3 to produce demineralised water for processes as well as for other existing reactor units;
• in Guadeloupe, the power plant in Jarry Sud has a sea water desalination facility, which has made it possible to stop using tap water and save around 50,000m³ of fresh water per year; the same system was installed in the Port Est (Réunion) and Bellefontaine (Martinique) power plants;
• in Italy, since the end of 2016, the CCG plant in Simeri Crichi is equipped with seawater desalination systems to replace freshwater withdrawals;
• at Martigues, the pilot of a new technology, currently being tested, could be deployed to produce process water from seawater. This new technology, called AquaOmnes, consists of extracting sodium chloride salts (NaCl) from seawater using liquid resins which are heat-regenerated.

3.2.3.2 Integrated and shared water management

A new world temperature record was set in 2020 for the third consecutive year, making good water management even more important.

3.2.3.2.1 Impact of climatic conditions on electricity generation

In 2020, France’s nuclear power plants suffered their biggest environment-related loss of production since 2003. At the end of 2020, cumulative generation losses due to climatic events, mainly drought, amounted to 3TWh, or 0.6% of the Group’s total output, mainly due to the 80 days of shutdown of the two Chooz units (for comparison: 1.4TWh in 2019 and 2.7TWh in 2018). The same is also true for the generation of hydroelectric power plants in Belgium, which, due to lower river flows, decreased by more than 30% at the end of September (132GWh compared to 178GWh in 2019).

In Laos, the dry season led to a reduction in generation at Nam Theun 2 between July and September, three months which are generally quite rainy. Thanks to the Octoberrains, the filling rate of the reservoir increased from 17% to 58%, but this remains a low level (the lowest since commissioning in 2010).

3.2.3.2.2 EDF met its commitments to stakeholders thanks to good management

Wherever it operates, EDF strictly manages water in a sober way on each site and is  part of a water management system for each river basin.

EDF is represented by the French Electricity Union⁽¹⁾ at meetings of each of the river basin water governing authorities. EDF’s actions are fully in line with the new masterplans for water development and management (SDAGEs) for the 2016-2021 period. Since 2003, EDF has had an internal water coordination body, chaired by the Group Senior Executive Vice-President, Renewable Energies. The operational management of water is ensured at the national level by the Water Management Group (GGE) responsible for ensuring the regular, weekly or daily monitoring, if necessary, of water stocks in order to coordinate various production constraints and the management of the multiple uses of water. In 2020, 660hm³ were removed from storage, to meet the various needs of water-users in the context of the specifications of hydropower concessions or agreements to share water.

EDF Hydro has been particularly vigilant in view of the drought conditions combined with the high tourist traffic on the lakes of our reservoirs. Very low flow rates on the Meuse and Moselle rivers resulted in the introduction of evaporation restrictions agreed in international conventions signed with Belgium and Luxembourg. These provisions in favour of downstream uses of frontier nuclear power plants were fully complied with, despite minor generation losses. With respect to the Garonne basin, the low-water support agreement was renewed with the provision of additional water volumes, thus increasing from 51 to 69 million cubic meters.

See also section 1.4.1.3.1.4 “Hydro generation issues” – “Managing access to water”.

3.2.4 Waste and circular economy

Optimising the use of the natural resources consumed by the Group’ s value chain is an essential component of the Group’s corporate responsibility. In this context, the Group undertakes to:

• promote a circular economy approach;
• avoid the production of conventional waste⁽²⁾ and promote the reuse, recycling and recovery of products/materials throughout the value chain;
• eliminate or substitute substances that pose a risk to the environment and persons with more environmentally friendly products;
• and assume its responsibilities with regard to radioactive waste.

3.2.4.1 Eco-design

The circular economy approach is integrated right from the engineering phase for new construction projects or major changes to processes. The design of facilities by engineering entities is based on an eco-design approach taking account of their environmental footprint, production management and waste recovery throughout their entire lifecycle. At each stage of the process, opportunities for eco-design are re-examined, with a view to saving resources, optimising materials and recycling over the entire life cycle of the installation.

Many mechanisms are used to implement a circular economy culture, including⁽³⁾ :

• eco-design in the study phase: EDF Renewables studies, for example, the impacts of wind and solar power technologies has a special focus on the end-of-life of equipment and its recyclability. The wind turbines installed by EDF are 95% recyclable;
• implementation of dedicated requirements in specifications, innovative technical solutions (water/oil separation of hydrocarbon effluents, asbestos removal, classification of industrial processes limiting waste production) or internal procedures simplifying forward thinking on construction sites;
• actions in terms of energy recovery within the industrial processes of the generating fleet. The Dampierre power station, for example, uses its hot water to supply nearby agricultural greenhouses;
• awareness-raising activities for staff and providers, for example in the form of e-learning or competitions. Therefore, a “Waste Prevention Competition” has been in place since 2011 and was extended Group-wide in 2016. It aims to detect and disseminate best practices.