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Distinguished Professor of Energy
University of California, Berkeley
If Peabody Energy, SSA Marine and Goldman Sachs really want to stimulate jobs in Washington State, as they claim in their support of the Gateway Pacific project, they can find much better ways to do so than building the sprawling $665 million coal terminal northwest of Bellingham, WA. They could use the money instead to fund energy-efficiency and renewable-energy projects, which per dollar invested, would create twice as many jobs at minimum. Modern coal terminals are highly mechanized facilities, and few workers are needed to operate them. As estimated in official project documents, the Gateway Pacific Terminal would support only… [more]
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A new report from RFF points out that despite the absence of cap-and-trade legislation, the United States is on course to reach the same emissions reduction goal – 17 percent fewer emissions from 2005 levels by 2020 – that would have been mandated under the Waxman–Markey cap-and-trade proposal [H.R. 2454], if it had become law in 2010. The report identified three factors contributing to the emissions reductions projections: Regulations under the Clean Air Act that were set to take effect without cap-and-trade legislation, particularly expected operating performance standards for new and existing stationary sources and vehicle efficiency standards; trends in fuel… [more]
View InsightBoth the Democratic and Republican parties have released their platforms, each offering a vision of the American energy landscape in the coming years. Both parties promote distinct visions of an “all-of-the-above” approach to energy. The end goal for both parties is U.S. energy independence, with the GOP’s vision seeming to rely primarily on the development of America’s fossil fuel resources and a business-friendly regulatory regime, while the Democrats’ platform promotes a “move towards a sustainable energy-independent future” that would allocate resources between fossil fuel and renewables development, alongside to a variety of “green” initiatives. GOP Democrats Fossil Fuels Supports “new, state-of-the-art coal-fired… [more]
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In an August 5th op-ed, the New York Times’ Thomas Friedman urges America to “Get It Right On Gas.” While noting domestic natural gas development’s potential to address a host of energy policy issues – the trade imbalance and job creation, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy security – Friedman quotes Energy Innovation’s Hal Harvey in asking if natural gas offers “a transition to a clean energy future, or does it defer a clean energy future?” “A sustained [natural] gas glut could undermine new investments in wind, solar, nuclear and energy efficiency systems – which have zero emissions – and thus… [more]
View InsightIt seems difficult to find areas of consensus on energy policy these days. For example, energy efficiency once received significant bipartisan support. That’s no longer the case. Most agree that energy security is a worthwhile goal. However, each Congress, a vast number of pathways toward improved energy security are advocated – tighter fuel standards, expanded domestic oil production, clean energy standards, more nuclear, less nuclear, electric vehicles, natural gas vehicles, flex fuel vehicles, etc. – and very few, if any, achieve lasting, multi-stakeholder, bipartisan support. In his recent book, “Power Plays: Energy Options in the Age of Peak Oil,” energy… [more]
View InsightThe House is planning to vote on the 2013 Energy and Water spending bill, which would authorize $32.1 billion for next year, $87.5 million more than current-year levels, according to The Hill. The bill would increase funding for oil, gas, and coal research, including $25 million for a shale oil research program, and provide $25 million for the controversial Yucca mountain nuclear waste facility program. The exact allocation of funds has yet to be finalized, and the House has introduced and voted to reject many amendments that would have cut spending. One of the largest proposed cuts would have come… [more]
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Late last year, a deal generated in the House blocked DOE from enforcing its energy efficient light bulb standards, which were set in place by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. A Congressman has said he plans to offer an amendment to extend that ban when the House considers the 2013 spending bill this year. Efforts to block enforcement of the standards this year will likely face political resistance and many manufacturers, due to business and manufacturing cycles, plan to meet or exceed the standards regardless. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), chair of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee,… [more]
View InsightLast week, House and Senate Appropriations Committees approved separate and distinct versions of a Fiscal Year 2013 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill. The legislation sets spending levels for DOE, among other agencies, and specific programs such as the State Energy Program (SEP). The SEP is administered by DOE, and provides funding to states for use by State Energy Offices. According to the National Association of State Energy Officers (NASEO), with “SEP funds and the resources leveraged by them, the 56 State and Territory Energy Offices develop and manage strategic programs that support the private sector in increasing energy efficiency,… [more]
View InsightIn 2011 the Obama Administration put out a challenge to utilities: give customers a way to better access and understand their energy use data. The challenge, and its result the “Green Button” initiative, is based on the assumption that the more information consumers have, the smarter they will be about their energy use decisions. Utilities around the country have begun to sign on to the initiative and commit to provide their customers with real-time energy use data. Data provided by utilities through the Green Button initiative will be collected and hosted by the Department of Energy in a standardized format.… [more]
View InsightIn a response to a New York Times ‘Room for Debate’ forum on energy efficiency, Cato Institute scholar Peter Van Doren argues that energy efficiency standards are problematic, and that the most effective way to reduce fossil fuel use is to tax fossil fuels to increase their price. Van Doren writes “if fossil fuel combustion produces byproducts that cause negative health effects on third parties as well as changes in the temperature of the atmosphere, the obvious lesson from economics is to increase fossil fuel prices enough through taxation to account for these effects. Then firms and consumers will react… [more]
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