Common Cause (dated July 2011 and April 2010) http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=6721533 [From a letter to the Buffalo News from Ronald Fraser] A recent Common Cause study (“Deep Drilling, Deep Pockets: Expenditures of the Natural Gas Industry in New York to Influence Public Policies”), found that pressure on elected officials in Albany to give drilling companies immediate access … Continue reading »
Posted on September 9, 2011 …
Texas Heat Wave, August 2011: Nature and Effects of an Electricity Supply Shortage
US DOE, Energy Information Admin. http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=3010 [From Site] A prolonged August heat wave in Texas produced two periods of very high wholesale prices in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the wholesale market operator for most of the State. Day-ahead, on-peak wholesale power prices for August 2011 rose far above the range of prices … Continue reading »
Switching from Coal to Natural Gas Would Do Little for Global Climate, Study Indicates
Tom Wigley (2011)” Coal to Gas: The Influence of Methane Leakage” Climate Change Letters. DOI 10.1007/s10584-011-0217-3 http://bit.ly/qHLIkf Although the burning of natural gas emits far less carbon dioxide than coal, a new study concludes that a greater reliance on natural gas would fail to significantly slow down climate change. The study appears this week in … Continue reading »
Out of the Bunker: Time for a Fair Deal on Shipping Emissions
Oxfam | World Wildlife Fund http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/bn-out-of-the-bunker-050911-en.pdf [Abstract] International shipping is a major – and rapidly growing – source of greenhouse gas emissions. Agreement to apply a carbon price to shipping can both reduce emissions and raise funds for climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing countries. This paper shows that doing so is possible while … Continue reading »
Eco-Driving: Strategic, Tactical, and Operational Decisions of the Driver that Improve Vehicle Fuel Economy
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Transportation Research Institute / By Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/86074 [From Green Car Congress] The types of vehicles consumers select has by far the most dominant impact on on-road fuel economy—the best vehicle currently available for sale in the US is nine times more fuel efficient than the worst vehicle. … Continue reading »
U.S. Supply Forecast and Potential Jobs and Economic Impacts (2012-2030) [arguing that 41.4 million jobs would be created if gov't allowed for more energy exploration]
Woods MacKenzie Energy Consulting http://www.api.org/Newsroom/upload/API-US_Supply_Economic_Forecast.pdf [From an Institute for Energy Research post by Jeffrey Hubbard] Yesterday, Wood Mackenzie Energy Consulting came out with a study that makes the argument that $1.4 million private sector jobs will be created if the federal government allows for more energy exploration and development. This study echoes earlier findings, which … Continue reading »
Energy Policy Act of 2005: BLM’s Use of Section 390 Categorical Exclusions for Oil and Gas Development
US Government Accountability Office http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-941T GAO’s analysis of BLM field office data showed that section 390 categorical exclusions were used to approve almost 6,900 oil-and-gas-related activities from fiscal year 2006 through fiscal year 2008. Nearly 6,100 of these categorical exclusions were used for drilling permits and the rest for other nondrilling activities. Most BLM officials … Continue reading »
Revised Draft SGEIS on the Oil, Gas and Solution Mining Regulatory Program (September 2011)
New York State, Dept. of Environmental Conservation http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/75370.html [AOL Energy article] [The] widely anticipated report is the revised draft of New York State’s environmental statement on hydraulic fracturing for natural gas, also known as “fracking…” According to this revised draft, made public on Wednesday, certain types of fracking wells will requite site-specific regulations. Those include: … Continue reading »
