Water, Climate Change, and Sustainability in the Southwest

PNAS / Glen M. MacDonald http://www.pnas.org/content/107/50/21256.full.pdf+html [Abstract] The current Southwest drought is exceptional for its high temperatures and arguably the most severe in history. Coincidentally, there has been an increase in forest and woodland mortality due to fires and pathogenic outbreaks. Although the high temperatures and aridity are consistent with projected impacts of greenhouse warming, [...]

H.R. 5116: Reauthorization of America COMPETES Act

US Senate http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-111hr5116eas/pdf/BILLS-111hr5116eas.pdf House version of America COMPETES Act (passed May 2010): http://www.rules.house.gov/111/LegText/111_hr5116txt.pdf The Senate’s compromise is not nearly as generous in funding as the $84 billion bill that passed the House in May. For instance, the Senate version would authorize only $918 million for the Energy Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, or ARPA-E, through [...]

S. 3874: To Amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water

US Senate http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-111s3874es/pdf/BILLS-111s3874es.pdf [Draft of this act available at http://rfflibrary.wordpress.com/2010/12/11/cbo-cost-estimate-s-3874-reduction-of-lead-in-drinking-water-act/] [From S.3874] For the purposes of this section, the term `lead free’ means (A) not containing more than 0.2 percent lead when used with respect to solder and flux; and (B) not more than a weighted average of 0.25 percent lead when used with respect [...]

Renewable Energy in the South

Nicholas Institute, Duke University / Marilyn A. Brown, Etan Gumerman, Youngsun Baek, Cullen Morris, Yu Wang http://tinyurl.com/2cfblcu [From report website] Transitioning away from increasingly scarce, carbon-intensive and polluting fossil fuels is one of the key challenges facing modern society. Prominent among the energy supply options, with inherently low life-cycle CO2 emissions, is a suite of [...]

Turkey’s Role and Priorities in Enhancement of Security of Oil and Gas Supplies

Siyaset Ekonomi Ve Toplum Araştırmaları Vakfı (SETA) http://www.setav.org/public/HaberDetay.aspx?Dil=tr&hid=54240 [Website] Geographically located in close proximity to hydrocarbon-rich regions, Turkey forms a natural energy corridor between important source countries and big consumer markets, and stands as a key country in ensuring global energy security through diversification of supply sources and routes. Within this context, some major pipeline [...]

@ Brookings Podcast: Climate Change: The Path from Cancun

Brookings Institution / by Katherine Sierra http://tinyurl.com/2f67ttf With the multi-nation climate change talks in Cancun done, expert Katherine Sierra says the path forward will be difficult in these hard economic times. Nevertheless, she says leaders of nations from the most developed to the very poorest understand the need to take action.

Summary Report for Sub-Sea and Sub-Surface Oil and Dispersant Detection: Sample and Monitoring

Operational Science Advisory Team, Unified Area Command; prepared for Paul F. Zukunft, RADM, U. S. Coast Guard Federal On-Scene Coordinator http://www.restorethegulf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/OSAT_Report_FINAL_17DEC.pdf [From The Hill's E2 Wire by Andrew Restruccia] A report released Thursday found evidence of oil in shallow waters along the Gulf of Mexico shoreline — prompting the dispatch of federal response teams to [...]

S. 303: America’s Great Outdoors Act of 2010

Introduced by Sen. Harry Reid America’s Great Outdoors Act of 2010 For major provisions of this Omnibus bill, see the Democratic Policy Committee page: http://dpc.senate.gov/dpcdoc.cfm?doc_name=lb-111-2-192 [From Politico] As if Democrats did not have enough on their plates in the lame-duck session, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced Friday that he has introduced yet another piece [...]

Firms Operating Under Infrastructure and Credit Constraints in Developing Countries : the Case of Power Generators

World Bank / by Philippe Alby, Jean-Jacques Dethier, and Stephane Straub http://vx.worldbank.org/t/2937183/5471042/13023/0/ Many developing countries are unable to provide their industrial sector with reliable power and many enterprises have to contend with electricity that is insufficient and of poor quality. Because of these constraints, firms in developing countries opt for self-generation even though it is [...]

The Full Economic Cost of Groundwater Extraction

World Bank / by Jopn Strand http://vx.worldbank.org/t/2937183/5471042/13020/0/ When a groundwater basin is exploited by a large number of farmers, acting independently, each farmer has little incentive to practice conservation that would primarily benefit other farmers. This can lead to excessive groundwater extraction. When farmers pay less than the full cost of electricity used for groundwater [...]