Western Organization of Resource Councils http://bit.ly/WdGEql [From an Energy Line article by Scott Streater, sub. req'd] There are not enough government inspectors to ensure that increased oil and natural gas drilling operations on federal and state lands across the West are operating correctly, according to an analysis of inspection and enforcement records by a conservation … Continue reading »
Tagged with States …
Climate-Induced Displacement of Alaska Native Communities
Brookings Institution / by Robin Bronen http://bit.ly/VvXgva Alaska has warmed twice as fast as the global average during the past half-century, and temperatures are projected to rise 1.5-5° F (1-3 ºC) by 2030 and by 5-18° F (3-6.5 ºC) by 2100. Less sea ice covers the Arctic Ocean today than at any time in recent … Continue reading »
Generation, Transport, and Disposal of Wastewater Associated with Marcellus Shale Gas Development
Duke Univ., Nicholas School of the Environment / by Brian D. Lutz, Aurana N. Lewis and Martin W. Doyle http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Lutz_WRR_2013_OnlineAheadofPrint.pdf [Abstract] Hydraulic fracturing has made vast quantities of natural gas from shale available, reshaping the energy landscape of the United States (US). Extracting shale gas, however, generates large, unavoidable volumes of wastewater, which to date … Continue reading »
Oil and Gas Extraction Operations in Colorado are a Major Source of Smog in the Region, Study Says
“Source Signature of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from Oil and Natural Gas Operations in Northeastern Colorado” in Environmental Science and Technology (January 14, 2013; DOI: 10.1021/es304119a) [You must register to download from http://pubs.acs.org.%5D / by Jessica B. Gilman, Brian M. Lerner, William C. Kuster, and Joost de Gouw http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/es304119a [Energy Wire, sub. req'd] Oil and … Continue reading »
The Future of Utility Customer-Funded Energy Efficiency Programs in the United States: Projected Spending and Savings to 2025
US DOE, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory / by Galen Barbose, Ian Hoffman, Megan Billingsley and Chuck Goldman http://emp.lbl.gov/sites/all/files/lbnl-5803e.pdf [report] http://emp.lbl.gov/sites/all/files/lbnl-5803e-brief.pdf [Powerpoint briefing] http://www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1007/s12053-012-9187-1 [abbreviated version, excluding the technical appendix, appears this month in Energy Efficiency Journal] [Press Press] Spending on energy efficiency programs funded by electric and natural gas utility customers will double by 2025 to … Continue reading »
Oil and Gas Water Use in Texas: Update to the 2011 Mining Water Use Report
Texas Oil and Gas Association (dated Sept. 2012) http://bit.ly/Y9TMz5 [Texas Tribune 1/15/13] A new University of Texas at Austin study has found that the amount of water used in the drilling practice known as hydraulic fracturing has risen sharply in recent years as oil and natural gas production has surged. But the 97-page study, funded by the … Continue reading »
Adapting to Sea-level Rise in Maryland
Testimony of John R. Griffin, Secretary, Maryland Department of Natural Resources before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works http://1.usa.gov/10bSm7M This is from a Pew Center on Climate Change post full of other useful links: To adapt to the problems caused by global climate change, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley recently issued an executive order … Continue reading »
Recurrent Flooding Study for Tidewater Virginia
Virginia Institute for Marine Science http://leg2.state.va.us/dls/h&sdocs.nsf/By+Year/SD32013/$file/SD3.pdf [Virginia Gazette] Recurrent coastal flooding — think Isabel, Ernesto, Irene, Sandy, the “Son of Ida,” and numerous other unnamed nor’easters — is a significant and growing threat to the people and places of Tidewater Virginia. A new report from William & Mary’s Virginia Institute of Marine Science lays out a … Continue reading »
Plug-in Electric Vehicle Action Tool
Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (aka The Pew Center on Global Climate Change) http://www.c2es.org/publications/plug-electric-vehicle-action-tool [Website] The Plug-in Electric Vehicle Action Tool is the synthesis of 2 workshops as well as research conducted by the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES). The PEV Action Tool helps state departments of transportation determine their goals for plug-in … Continue reading »
California’s Water Market, By the Numbers, Update 2012
Public Policy Institute of California http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1041 This report provides a check-up on California’s progress with two innovative water management tools: water marketing and groundwater banking. These tools are part of a modern approach that will enable California to manage its scarce water resources more flexibly and sustainably.
