aka “INTERMEDIATE-LEVEL ETHANOL BLENDS ENGINE DURABILITY STUDY” Coordinating Research Council (CRC) http://bit.ly/Kmi4us [From an InsideEPA.com article, sub. req'd] An oil and automotive industry study released May 16 concludes that EPA’s approval of a 15-percent ethanol fuel blend places consumers at risk of incurring billions of dollars in engine damage, which could raise questions about the … Continue reading »
Is the ETS Still the Best Option?
Istituto Bruno Leoni / by Stefano Clò & Emanuele Vendramin http://www.brunoleonimedia.it/public/Papers/IBL-Special_Report-ETS.pdf (summary) [From an article in the European Economic Review] [The report] provides a harsh critique of the functioning of the ETS. It acknowledges that the ETS represents “a milestone” in international climate policy and is a success as far as trading activity is concerned: … Continue reading »
China Power: Benefits and Costs of the “Strong, Smart Grid”
Entri (Energy Transition Research Institute) / by William Chandler, Chen Shiping, Holly Gwin and Wang Yanjia http://bit.ly/JTaNos [From Entri site] Entri’s new study of China Power examines the benefits and the costs of deploying a wide range of technologies to satisfy China’s demand for electric power. We have completed two elements of this study. First, … Continue reading »
Supply Chain and Outage Analysis of MISO Coal Retrofits for MATS
Brattle Group http://www.brattle.com/_documents/UploadLibrary/Upload1039.pdf [From an Climate Wire article by Daniel Cusick, sub., req'd] Electric utilities will struggle to meet new U.S. EPA regulations governing mercury emissions from coal-fired plants, a new study has found, noting that surging demand for the equipment needed to retrofit or replace old boilers will lead to project backlogs and drive … Continue reading »
Understanding Unconventional Oil
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace / by Deborah Gordon http://carnegieendowment.org/files/unconventional_oil.pdf [From the report also available in HTML here] …Only with sound policy guidance can we arrive at a decarbonized fuel system to drive our transportation sector and fuel the global economy. Moving forward to replace conventional oils in a structured, safe manner will require the following … Continue reading »
The Impact of Ethanol Production on U.S. and Regional Gasoline Markets: An Update to 2012
Iowa State Univ., Center for Agricultural and Rural Development / by Xiaodong Du and Dermot J. Hayes http://www.card.iastate.edu/publications/synopsis.aspx?id=1166 [Press Release from the Renewable Fuels Assoc.] America’s growing use of domestically-produced ethanol reduced wholesale gasoline prices by an average of $1.09 per gallon in 2011, according to updated research conducted by economics professors at the University of Wisconsin and Iowa … Continue reading »
Global Water Security: Intelligence Community Assessment
Defense Intelligence Agency or the Dept. of State http://www.dni.gov/nic/ICA_Global%20Water%20Security.pdf [From a Climate Wire article by Jane Pyper, sub. req'd] …The report concludes that while it is unlikely there will be wars over water in the next 10 years, water challenges — including drought, floods and poor water quality — could exacerbate regional tensions and could … Continue reading »
Hydraulic Fracturing and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA): Selected Issues
Congressional Research Service http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42502.pdf The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies to consider the potential environmental consequences of the actions they propose to take by preparing one of three NEPA documents. Actions that fit within a categorical exclusion (CE) undergo a relatively low level of review because these are actions that an agency … Continue reading »
CBO: Energy Security in the United States
Congressional Budget Office http://www.cbo.gov/publication/43012 [From CBO blog] …Because of the global nature of the oil market, no policy could eliminate the costs borne by consumers as a result of disruptions, but some policies could reduce those costs. Policies to Address Temporary Disruptions. Policies targeting temporary disruptions in the supply of oil take two general forms: … Continue reading »
Aviation and the European Union’s Emission Trading Scheme
Congressional Research Service http://opencrs.com/document/R42392/ [From Summary] …Air carriers from the United States and other countries have vociferously objected to inclusion of international aviation in the EU ETS. The U.S. government and other nations have pressed the EU to exclude foreign carriers. Two bills in Congress address the controversy. The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. … Continue reading »
