Recently in Environment Category

The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) recently released the report Cornerstones: Building a Secure Foundation for North Carolina's Energy Future. The report recommends North Carolina take specific policy steps to reduce carbon emissions by 60 percent in 2030. The recommendations fall under the four categories of energy efficiency, clean energy, pollution capture, and long-range planning. The full report can be found here.

A survey of 700 American adults found that 37 percent of those polled named "fuel efficiency and alternative fuels" as the top priority for technological investment in the next 10 years. Fuel efficiency and alternative fuels received the most votes followed by medical (30%) and environment (14%). The survey was commissioned by the Fairfax County (Virginia) Economic Development Authority and conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs. Survey results can be found here.

A study from the Energy & Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota found that higher ethanol blends resulted in better fuel economy than unleaded gasoline. The study tested eight different ethanol blends on a Ford Fusion, a Toyota Camry, a non-flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala, and a flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala. At the E30 level, the Toyota Camry and the Ford Fusion ran more miles per gallon than unleaded gasoline. The non-flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala ran more miles per gallon at E40 and at E20 on the flex-fuel vehicle.

In addition to fuel economy, the study also tested emissions and found that exhaust emission values for nonmethane organic gases, nitrogen oxides, and carbon monoxide met EPA standards for all vehicles tested except the flex-fuel Chevrolet Impala which exceed the nonmethane organic gases standard on E20 and regular gasoline.

The full report can be found here.

Last week, 25x'25 released its Sustainability Principles at their 2008 annual summit in Omaha, Nebraska. The document was issued by the 25x'25 National Steering Committee with the purpose of guiding future 25x'25 work. The document defines sustainability as follows:

"Sustainability -- To be a long-term solution for America, renewable energy production must conserve, enhance, and protect natural resources and be economically viable, environmentally sound, and socially acceptable."

The 18 sustainability principles range from protecting air quality to ensuring renewable energy production has the same access to markets as fossil fuels. The full document can be accessed here.

Recent studies published in Science magazine raised concerns about misusing land to respond to the feedstock needs of biofuels. In the wake of these reports, media outlets raised significant concerns about the environmental dangers of biofuels. In a response to these concerns, the national 25x'25 released a statement emphasizing the studies' recommendations "to avoid these problems and insure that future biofuels give us both a new renewable energy source and greatly reduced greenhouse gas emissions." The development of second generation biofuels that come from biomass such as switchgrass and wood resources will provide more energy using less water, less water, and less energy unit per gallon of fuel. To read the full statement go here.

In August 2007, The Energy Information Administration (EIA) released the report Energy and economic impacts of implementing both a 25-percent renewable portfolio standard and a 25-percent renewable fuel standard. The report had the following results:

• The implementation of the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) cause dramatic decreases in the use of coal, natural gas, and petroleum-based fuels with a shift towards biopower, wind power, and biofuels.
  
• Total U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide emissions are 14% lower than business-as-usual.
  
• Achieving the RPS and RFS leads to higher energy prices, as producers substitute more expensive renewable fuels for less expensive fossil fuels. Higher energy prices reduce economic activity.
  
• Higher prices contribute to a reduction in transportation demand for liquid motor fuels on an energy basis.

In a press release by the national 25x'25 campaign, Ernie Shea, 25x'25 project coordinator, said the report "produced better-than-expected results, including major reductions in U.S. oil dependence and carbon dioxide emissions.” Shea also said the report does not "quantify major economic benefits gained by reductions in dependence on foreign oil, nor does it account for improvements to our national and rural economies and the creation of new jobs that will result from growth in the renewable energy sector."

The National Research Council of the National Academies released in the fall of 2007 the report Water Implications of Biofuels Production in the United States. The report focuses on the strains that biofuels production can put on the nation's water supply. Biofuels put strain on water resources through increases in irrigating biofuel feedstocks and in the biofuel conversion process. In addition, water quality issues are raised due to the large use of fertilizers in feedstock production, particularly in corn crops.

The report suggests policy action that support feedstocks with lower fertilizer and water needs, particularly cellulosic feedstocks.