The OurEnergyLibrary aggregates and indexes publicly available fact sheets, journal articles, reports, studies, and other publications on U.S. energy topics. It is updated every week to include the most recent energy resources from academia, government, industry, non-profits, think tanks, and trade associations. Suggest a resource by emailing us at info@ourenergypolicy.org.
Resource Library
261 to 270 of 343 item(s) were returned.
To stave off the worst impacts of climate change, the world must limit warming to no more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial temperatures. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says this will require developed countries—especially the United States as the world’s second-largest emitter—to cut their greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution by at least 80 percent by 2050, relative to 1990 emissions levels.1,2 The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) partnered with the internationally recognized consultant group Energy + Environmental Economics to determine whether, and how, the United States could achieve this target.
NRDC’s groundbreaking analysis demonstrates clearly that with bold …
View Full ResourceMore than 40 percent of the total energy consumed in the United States is used for operating buildings, and most of that energy goes toward appliances and building-related equipment. In accordance with the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), as amended, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) implements minimum efficiency standards for a wide range of appliances and equipment used in residential and commercial buildings. Within the parameters of technical feasibility and cost effectiveness, federal efficiency standards compel product designers and manufacturers to reduce the amount of energy and water necessary for the proper operation of appliances and …
View Full ResourceHow the energy transition affects the value of energy reserves, buildings and capital stock
A working paper based on global REmap analysis
Assets like power plants can become “stranded” by unanticipated or premature write-downs, devaluation or conversion to liabilities. This will happen to some degree in the transition to a low-carbon economy. However delaying action to address climate change would result in significantly more severe asset stranding, according to this analysis by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). This raises concerns for investors and companies, as well as policy makers and regulators.
This paper examines the potential magnitude of asset …
View Full ResourceIn the past few years, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in the news. From Google’s self-driving cars to Apple’s Siri to Netflix’s movie recommendation engine to smart buildings to Nest thermostats, the list goes on of applications utilizing ML to automatically derive value from numerous input sources.
But how do these use cases apply to more conservative, industrial industries like energy and utilities that are often seen as technology laggards?…
View Full ResourceThis report, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Policy and Systems Analysis, describes an initial analysis exploring the potential implications of widespread electrification of energy services in the buildings, transportation, and industrial sectors on the future evolution of the U.S. electricity system. Given its exploratory nature, the analysis considers only a limited set of electrification, efficiency, and power sector decarbonization scenarios; in addition, estimates of the electrification potential of each end-use sector— buildings, industry, and transport—are based on a relatively aggregated analysis of end-use service and fuel demands by sector and state and, therefore, do not …
View Full ResourceTechnological breakthroughs are needed to reduce carbon emissions in the energy sector. Even with economically viable and scalable renewable-based solutions available for around two-thirds of the world’s energy supply, population growth and rising energy demand could outpace energy decarbonisation without urgent investments in research and development (R&D).
This working paper from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) examines the basic conditions required to nurture innovation and produce new technologies for a low-carbon future.
Broadly, the paper advises governments around the world to:
-
Nurture Innovation: This means putting proper policy incentives in place, based on a long-term perspective.
-
Pursue power-system integration:
Industry experts and efficiency advocates agree that improving the efficiency of building systems is an important strategy for achieving the next level of efficiency in buildings. A systems approach considers the interactions of components within and among various building systems (e.g., heating and cooling systems, lighting systems, miscellaneous electric loads), as well as interactions among multiple buildings, and between the building and the electric grid.
The Systems Efficiency Initiative (SEI) provides a critical forum for understanding the energy savings potential of a systems approach and for developing strategies for moving the market in this direction. Toward this goal, the SEI’s …
View Full ResourceInvestment is the lifeblood of the global energy system. Individual decisions about how to direct capital to various energy projects – related to the collection, conversion, transport and consumption of energy resources – combine to shape global patterns of energy use and related emissions for decades to come. Government energy and climate policies seek to influence the scale and nature of investments across the economy, and long-term climate goals depend on their success. Understanding the energy investment landscape today and how it can evolve to meet decarbonisation goals are central elements of the energy transition. Around two-thirds of global greenhouse …
View Full ResourceEmployment in the renewable energy and energy efficiency sectors in both the United States and abroad continued to experience growth through 2016. According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), renewable energy employment alone (excluding efficiency) grew by nearly 18 percent between Q2 2015 and Q1 2016. The agency reports that 3,384,834 Americans were directly employed by the clean energy industry (which includes the energy efficiency, smart grid, and energy storage industries; electric power generation from renewables; renewable fuels production; and the electric, hybrid, and hydrogen-based vehicle industries) in Q1 2016. Among the leading U.S. employment sectors were energy-efficient appliances, …
View Full ResourceDecreasing energy consumption by making buildings more energy efficient can avoid the construction of new power plants, reduce grid infrastructure costs, and lower carbon emissions—in addition to saving customers money on their energy bills. Most leading states offer energy efficiency (EE) programs that encourage lower energy usage to achieve these significant public benefits. Many of these programs provide customers an incentive payment for installing energy-efficient equipment (a type of EE measure), estimating (or “deeming”) future savings on the basis of detailed technical analyses and the results of efficiency evaluations. This approach has served efficiency programs well for years—and in many …
View Full Resource