Posted on April 11, 2011 …

Japanese Quake: Nuclear Power

House of Commons Library (UK) http://tinyurl.com/5rr48oj This note sets out official information from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about the nuclear power plants in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami, 11 March 2011, with comments about what is happening and why. The Health Protection Agency, the official body charged with advising the UK government … Continue reading »

Willingness to Pay for Electric Vehicles and their Attributes

Resources and Energy Economics (in press) / by Michael K. Hidruea, George R. Parsons, Willett Kempton and Meryl P. Gardner http://tinyurl.com/6g67g5q [Abstract] This paper presents a stated preference study of electric vehicle choice using data from a national survey. In our choice experiment, 3029 respondents chose between their preferred gasoline vehicle and two electric versions … Continue reading »

Clean Energy Progress Report

International Energy Agency http://www.iea.org/papers/2011/CEM_Progress_Report.pdf Key findings Clean energy technologies are making clear progress globally, but fossil fuels continue to outpace them. More aggressive clean energy policies are required, including the removal of fossil fuel subsidies and implementation of transparent, predictable and adaptive incentives for cleaner, more efficient energy options… [H/T: Full Text Reports]

Great Game 2.0: The Race for Clean Energy

Deloitte http://tinyurl.com/3npk2sd Dominance in the great energy game used to mean control over fossil fuels. The new Great Game is a race for technology and involves liberating energy from geography. The winners will be those businesses and nations who find methods to create clean energy from renewable such as wind and solar, carbon-scrubbed oil, natural … Continue reading »

U.S. Global Climate Change Policy: Evolving Views on Cost, Competitiveness, and Comprehensiveness

Congressional Budget Office http://opencrs.com/document/RL30024/2011-02-24/?25911 [Summary] The nature of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (particularly carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions) makes their control difficult to integrate with the U.S economy and traditional U.S. energy policy. Despite the obvious interrelationship between energy policy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the United States has struggled to integrate the two. For a … Continue reading »

Keystone XL Pipeline Project: Key Issues

Congressional Research Service http://opencrs.com/document/R41668/2011-03-04/?25910 [Summary] Canadian pipeline company TransCanada has filed an application with the U.S. Department of State to build the Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport crude oil from the oil sands region of Alberta, Canada, to refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast and Midwest region. Keystone XL would have the capacity to … Continue reading »

Japan’s 2011 Earthquake and Tsunami: Economic Effects and Implications for the United States

Congressional Budget Office http://opencrs.com/document/R41702/2011-03-31/?25928 [Summary] …Physical damage has been estimated to be from $250 billion to as much as $309 billion. (Greece’s GDP is $330 billion). In excess of 28,000 persons in Japan are killed or missing, and more than 196,000 homes and other buildings have been totally or partially damaged…Analysts expect that over the … Continue reading »

U.S. Trade Deficit and the Impact of Changing Oil Prices

Congressional Budget Office http://opencrs.com/document/RS22204/2011-02-28/?26020 [Summary] …Turmoil in the Middle East caused petroleum prices to rise sharply in the first two months of 2011 and could add $100 billion to the U.S. trade deficit in 2011. The increase in energy import prices is pushing up the price of energy to consumers and could spur some elements … Continue reading »

Dataset: Vulnerability to Climate Change

Center for Global Development / by David Wheeler http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/1424986/? Senior fellow David Wheeler quantifies and makes available in this dataset the vulnerability of 233 countries to three major effects of climate change (weather-related disasters, sea-level rise, and reduced agricultural productivity). The dataset is discussed in his working paper, “Quantifying Vulnerability to Climate Change: Implications for … Continue reading »