A combination of a changing global climate coupled with rapid socio-economic development is putting unprecedented pressure on water, energy, and food resources. Addressing these issues within a nexus approach can help to identify appropriate management practices and strategic policies to ensure natural resources are used more sustainably thus avoiding exacerbating issues of water scarcity and food insecurity. In this study, we used an integrated water resource planning and irrigation model (WEAP) to assess emerging water-energy nexus issues on the Santa Elena peninsula in Ecuador. Simulated water demands showed that current water resources availability is insufficient to meet full irrigation requirements, especially during the dry season. Annual average energy demand for water conveyance in the SEP was significantly higher than for irrigation with 94.5 GWh and 13.5 GWh being used, respectively. Future challenges associated with changes in agricultural irrigation and urban demands within the SEP were evaluated using scenario analysis. This included considering various scenarios such as agricultural expansion, climate change, population growth, and a shift to export-oriented agriculture. The study underscores the significance of nexus thinking in guiding policy and decision-making in Santa Elena, although the limited data prevents its use in an operational framework. The benefits of adopting an integrated modelling approach to analyse water and energy nexus trade-offs are also discussed.

全球气候的变化加上社会经济的快速发展给水、能源和粮食资源带来了前所未有的压力。通过联系方法解决这些问题有助于确定适当的管理做法和战略政策，以确保更可持续地利用自然资源，从而避免加剧水资源短缺和粮食不安全问题。在这项研究中，我们使用综合水资源规划和灌溉模型（WEAP）来评估厄瓜多尔圣埃琳娜半岛新出现的水与能源关系问题。模拟需水量表明，当前可用水资源不足以满足充分灌溉需求，特别是在旱季。九江省输水年平均能源需求显着高于灌溉，分别使用 94.5 GWh 和 13.5 GWh。使用情景分析评估了与 SEP 内农业灌溉和城市需求变化相关的未来挑战。这包括考虑农业扩张、气候变化、人口增长以及向出口导向型农业的转变等各种情景。该研究强调了联系思维在指导圣埃琳娜政策和决策方面的重要性，尽管有限的数据阻碍了其在操作框架中的使用。还讨论了采用集成建模方法来分析水和能源关系权衡的好处。