Efficiency of energy delivery systems: I. An economic and energy analysis

Energy-return-on-investment (ERI) analysis is a variation of more traditional cost-benefit analyses, a variation that is particularly important in times of diminishing fuel resources. We present a simple set of procedures for ERI analysis and apply those procedures to central New York State, where there is a proposal for a new 870 MW_e coal-fired generating station. We compared the energy and dollar costs of building that facility with the costs of an alternative comprehensive regional program of insulation. The analysis showed that regional insulation was more efficient in conserving energy than the plant was in providing it by at least a factor of 4 in economic terms and by a factor of more than 15 when viewed as energy returned on energy invested.     

Efficiency of energy delivery systems: III. Assessing potential energy savings of a comprehensive insulation program

It is possible to develop large quantities of energy by installing a comprehensive regional insulation program. This paper develops a computer model for examining the quantity of energy that may be saved in a region if such a program is undertaken. The program requires data on: number of houses, type of houses and present degree of insulation. The results indicate that in the region under consideration it is possible to make available more energy, far cheaper, through insulation than by the alternative of constructing a large power plant.     

Human-ecological dimensions of disaster resiliency in Thailand: social capital and aid delivery

This study focuses on the human-ecological dimension of disaster resilience after the 2004 tsunami. The paper examines how concepts of social capital and external aid delivery influence community performance in conservation of mangrove ecosystems. Experiences are reported through the words of local informants in six villages in Thailand. Findings indicate that social capital represents a potential for collective action, but design of aid programmes may prevent such action. Programmes that emphasised bottom-up aid delivery mobilised local social capital and directed it toward obtaining resources that fit local needs and capabilities. Alternatively, top-down aid programmes provided significant resources, but oppressed mobilisation of social capital. Implications are that disaster stricken communities should be treated as active participants, rather than the more common perspective that views them as vulnerable and in a state of helplessness.     

Estimating the value of foresight: aggregate analysis of natural hazard mitigation benefits and costs

Hazard mitigation planners claim that foresighted present actions and investments produce significant future benefits. However, they have difficulty in supporting their claims, since previously their evidence typically was derived from individual case studies. Constituents and decision makers are often sceptical, believing that individual cases are either inapplicable to their situation or non-randomly selected to support a particular view. Planners need objective evidence based on a large body of experience to support the case for mitigation. Such is the unique contribution of a recent U.S. study that found that each dollar spent in three federal natural hazard mitigation grant programs (the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, Project Impact, and the Flood Mitigation Assistance Program) saves society an average of $4 in future avoided losses. Complementing the aggregate benefit-cost analysis with community-based evaluations, the study yielded insights on how planners can improve long-term community resilience in the face of extreme events. Valuable lessons for mitigation planners and policy makers emerged: the need to consider a wide variety of losses, the importance of mixing qualitative with quantitative analysis, the value of averaging results over a large number of projects, and the need to more explicitly address social issues and data collection in order to reduce vulnerability and enhance resilience to cope with twenty-first century hazards.     

Health and safety implications of alternative energy technologies. II. Solar

No energy technology is risk free when all aspects of its utilization are taken into account. Every energy technology has some attendant direct and indirect health and safety concerns. Solar technologies examined in this paper are wind, ocean thermal energy gradients, passive, photovoltaic, satellite power systems, low- and high-temperature collectors, and central power stations, as well as tidal power. For many of these technologies, insufficient historical data are available from which to assess the health risks and environmental impacts. However, their similarities to other projects make certain predictions possible. For example, anticipated problems in worker safety in constructing ocean thermal energy conversion systems will be similar to those associated with other large-scale construction projects, like deep-sea oil drilling platforms. Occupational hazards associated with photovoltaic plant operation would be those associated with normal electricity generation, although for workers involved in the actual production of photovoltaic materials, there is some concern for the toxic effects of the materials used, including silicon, cadmium, and gallium arsenide.Satellite power systems have several unique risks. These include the effects of long-term space travel for construction workers, effects on the ozone layer and the attendant risk of skin cancer in the general public, and the as-yet-undetermined effects of long-term, low-level microwave exposure. Hazards may arise from three sources in solar heating and cooling systems: water contamination from corrosion inhibitors, heat transfer fluids, and bactericides; collector over-heating, fires, and out-gassing and handling and disposal of system fluids and wastes. Similar concerns exist for solar thermal power systems. Even passive solar systems may increase indoor exposure levels to various air pollutants and toxic substances, eitherdirectly from the solar system itself or indirectly by trapping released pollutants from furnishings, building materials, and indoor combustion.Operated by Union Carbide Corporation under contract W-7405-eng-26 for the U.S. Department of Energy.     

Estimating the opportunity costs of biodiversity protection in the Brigalow Belt, New South Wales

The New South Wales Government recently introduced the Native Vegetation Conservation Act to protect the native grassland and woodland of the state. The Act protects biodiversity by preventing farmers from clearing such vegetation on their properties but, as a consequence, reduces farm incomes and land values. An economic model of the relationship between land value and percentage of farm in native vegetation is integrated with an ecological model of the relationship between species lost and percentage of the farms in native vegetation. The integrated framework is applied to estimate the opportunity costs of the Act for one important agricultural area of the state, the northern part of the Brigalow Belt South Bio-Region. If all the vegetation were protected, the reduction in land value would be at least 14.3%, which is an opportunity cost of at least 148.5 dollars m for the area. Both the benefits and costs of biodiversity protection must be accounted for, so risk simulations are then combined with benefit-cost analysis to compare the benefits of biodiversity protection to these costs.     

Alternative energy: Environmental and economic factors associated with renewable energy and creating new integrated energy management systems

At best, the future of alternative and renewable energy remains uncertain. Our dependency on fossil fuels is already depleting world supplies of coal and petroleum while increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Most assuredly, the ability of alternative energy, described in this article as biomass, hydrogen, wind, solar, and geothermal power, to compete and even integrate with fossil fuels will depend on several important variables: First, developing, as well as developed, countries must be willing to direct long-term public and private funding towards innovative energy technologies by increasing research and promoting public education. Secondly, the “bottom line” economics associated with alternative energy technology must clearly show a positive cost/benefit ratio. Revenues and not deficits are paramount to the sustainability of alternative energy. Lastly, many experts argue for the environmental benefits of alternative energy by way of carbon reductions. The 1997 Kyoto Global Warming Treaty requires the United States in particular to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning by 7 percent below 1990 levels. While many experts argue that reactions to global warming and the alternative energy benefits anticipated because of them are fiscally irresponsible and not worth the billions of tax dollars intended, we can be assured that a business-as-usual attitude will continue without increased government and public support.© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

EcoMetrics: Integrating direct and indirect environmental costs and benefits into management information systems

This article suggests a set of metrics that may impact both profitability and environmental quality, capture and quantify eco-efficiency costs and benefits, and help managers understand and focus on tangible, yet difficult-to-quantify benefits (such as improved morale, innovation, etc.). In order to do this, it will frame the issues pertinent to developing eco-efficiency metrics; identify criteria for effective metrics to enable companies/consultants/etc. to discuss, evaluate, and select program metrics; outline the universe of possible metrics; suggest key metrics for a typical company; identify data quality, availability and other constraints; and suggest a methodology for incorporating environmental metrics into operating metrics. [Note: This article is not intended to provide a definitive overview of environmental metrics; rather, it proposes an operational framework for considering, selecting, and implementing metrics that are meaningful in both environmental and business terms. For an overview, see for example, Environmental Policy Performance Indicators;¹ Company Environmental Reporting;² The Greening of Industrial Ecosystems;³ Measuring Corporate Environmental Performance⁴]. The flow and embodiment of materials and energy in production and consumption activities of the economy underlie both economic growth and environmental perturbations… [Yet] existing accounting systems can prevent modern firms from internalizing environmental costs and considerations, and can compound difficulties encountered in effecting environmentally preferable changes⁵.     

Development of mixed conducting membranes for clean coal energy delivery

Mixed conducting membranes can be used for the separation of oxygen from air in both coal gasification and oxy-fuel power plants. In this review paper, the basic perovskite and non-perovskite structures, composition, properties and performance are addressed. Two typical perovskite materials, BSCF and LSCF, show promise in industrial applications as their oxygen fluxes are at least one order of magnitude higher than non-perovskite membranes. BSCF membranes are now delivering oxygen fluxes in excess of 5 ml min^?1 cm^?2. Latest developments in perovskite composition, effects of impurities in membrane performance and membrane geometry are discussed giving an insight into the potential utilisation in clean energy delivery processes. Strategies for improving membranes performance using unit operations with different geometries and possible future technologies are also addressed.     

Automated energy management in distributed electricity systems: An EEPOS approach

The increasing capacity of distributed electricity generation brings new challenges in maintaining a high security and quality of electricity supply. New techniques are required for grid support and power balance. The highest potential for these techniques is to be found on the part of the electricity distribution grid.

This article addresses this potential and presents the EEPOS project’s approach to the automated management of flexible electrical loads in neighborhoods. The management goals are (i) maximum utilization of distributed generation in the local grid, (ii) peak load shaving/congestion management, and (iii) reduction of electricity distribution losses. Contribution to the power balance is considered by applying two-tariff pricing for electricity.

The presented approach to energy management is tested in a hypothetical sensitivity analysis of a distribution feeder with 10 households and 10 photovoltaic (PV) plants with an average daily consumption of electricity of 4.54 kWh per household and a peak PV panel output of 0.38 kW per plant. Energy management shows efficient performance at relatively low capacities of flexible load. At a flexible load capacity of 2.5% (of the average daily electricity consumption), PV generation surplus is compensated by 34–100% depending on solar irradiance. Peak load is reduced by 30% on average. The article also presents the load shifting effect on electricity distribution losses and electricity costs for the grid user.     

Estimating the Relative Efficiency of Brazilian Publicly and Privately Owned Water Utilities: A Stochastic Cost Frontier Approach1

Abstract: This paper assesses cost efficiencies of Brazilian public and private companies of water supply. To measure the efficiency, we used a stochastic frontier model derived from the translog family – a specification similar to a Cobb‐Douglas including a quadratic term in log output. The model parameters are estimated by maximum likelihood using Brazilian data for the year 2002. Statistical inference leads to the conclusion that there is no evidence that private firms and public firms are significantly different in terms of efficiency measurements.     

The costs and benefits of packaging waste management systems in Europe: the perspective of local authorities

Local authorities are generally in charge of household packaging waste management operations, particularly in countries with Green Dot schemes or similar extended producer responsibility systems. This leads to the need of establishing a system of financial transfers between the packaging industry and the local authorities (regarding the costs involved in selective collection and sorting). In the present study, the costs and benefits of recycling, from the perspective of local authorities, are compared for Portugal, Belgium and Italy (in Lombardia region), adopting the same economic–financial methodology. The results show that the industry is not paying the net cost of packaging waste management. If the savings attained by diverting packaging waste from other treatment operations are not considered, it seems that the industry should increase the financial support to local authorities. However, if the avoided costs with other treatments are considered as a benefit for local authorities, the costs are generally outweighed by the benefits, and the financial support could, therefore, be reduced.     

An assessment methodology for successional systems. II. Statistical tests and specific examples

This paper presents a dynamic framework for environmental assessment when the system under study is undergoing successional change. Successional differences between sites for which one wishes to detect a difference because of a treatment are essentially confounding factors. We show how successional changes over the study period or resulting from differences in study site plot ages can be factored out by developing a null model of expected behavior over time. The null model for change in state with time is characterized in terms of a stochastic envelope around a nominal trajectory. Specific tests for the detection of trends associated with succession are described and illustrated on example data. It is concluded that the methods developed work particularly well for laboratory microcosm data.     

Networks,protest and regulatory systems: the case of energy from waste

In this paper, we examine the claims that competing networks make over the safety or risk attached to an energy-from-waste (EfW) plant in Crymlyn Burrows in South Wales. The paper draws upon a governmentality perspective and identifies three networks at the heart of decision-making: a dissenter network, a developer network and a regulatory network. The arguments put forward by the networks reveal much about how power relations are realised at a local level. The paper draws upon a longitudinal case study approach to demonstrate that networks have a life beyond a development decision and that key actors can align themselves with competing networks at different points in the development and operation phase of an EfW plant.     

Wave energy vs. other energy sources: A reassessment of the economics

The large scatter in the predictions of wave energy costs, which is caused in part by the simplifications assumed by existing models, is a hindrance for the development of this promising renewable. In this context, the main objective of this paper is to reassess the cost of wave energy taking into account a number of elements that are usually overlooked, or not considered simultaneously. This analysis has been performed in relation to the European context. The direct and indirect costs of a wave farm are examined, and a value for each is presented. The levelized cost (€/MWh) of wave energy is then calculated for different scenarios in order to compare the profitability of wave energy with that of other energy sources. After that, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to identify the main parameters affecting the total cost, considering in particular the effect on the levelized cost of considering: (i) the cost reductions arising from economies of scale and technological effects; (ii) an O&M cost variable throughout the useful life of the farm; and (iii) the externalities. In sum, this work sets the basis for a thorough economic comparison of wave energy with other sources of energy.     

Developing a sustainable energy strategy for a water utility. Part II: A review of potential technologies and approaches

Environmental legislation is increasing the amounts of bought-in electricity required for sewage treatment, and generating larger volumes of sewage sludge to be treated and disposed of. Concurrently, concerns over global warming and food safety from sewage sludge recycling on agricultural land is augmenting the costs of conventional sewage and sludge treatment technologies and practices. This paper reviews some emerging technologies and practices that may assist in mitigating these problems in the future. In addition, a number of potential renewable energy technologies available to water companies are reviewed. Results suggest that through the take-up of new technologies, current and future water quality standards could be delivered in a more sustainable way. However, this series of papers also highlights that institutional and political conflicts may have inadvertently failed to recognise the wider effects of improving water quality and lessened the financial support necessary for their widespread take-up. It is also suggested that through the use of a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) approach, stakeholders could gain a better understanding of the broader environmental effects of achieving certain water quality standards and develop policy and long-term investment strategies accordingly. However, to fulfill the information requirements of an SEA, an appropriate appraisal tool that considers many of these factors in unison is required, and a possible technique is suggested.     

Performance assessment of integrated energy systems for HVAC applications

In this article, energy and exergy analyses are conducted for two integrated systems which can be used in HVAC applications. These two systems are analyzed for the cases of single generation, cogeneration and trigeneration, and their performances are evaluated through energy and exergy efficiencies. The parametric studies are performed to investigate the effects of using cogeneration and extended to trigeneration on the system performance. To perform the comparisons between the systems for multiple options, the same amounts of outputs (in terms of electricity, heating, cooling) are produced for all systems. The energy analyses of systems 1 and 2 show a great benefit for moving from single generation to trigeneration, with the trigeneration efficiencies of 83.5% and 87.2%, respectively, and single generation efficiencies of 47% for both systems. However, the exergy analyses show that trigeneration may not always become more efficient than single generation, particularly for system 1, due to the fact that the trigeneration exergy efficiency is 38.7% and the corresponding single generation efficiency is 44.3%. For system 2, the trigeneration exergy efficiency is 52.7% while the single generation efficiency becomes 44.3%. Depending on the type of cogeneration or cogeneration design, the system can be more efficient.     

Long-term iron ore price modeling: Marginal costs vs. incentive price

The paper studies and applies the approaches to forecast long-term (LT) real prices of iron ore. This price is crucial for valuation of investments in Greenfield iron ore projects on the horizon of more than 5 years. The forecast is obtained by three different approaches which are usually used by investment bank analysts: marginal costs approach and 2 approaches based on calculation of incentive price. The paper concludes that there has been a structural shift on the iron ore market and LT iron ore prices will be higher by 20–30% than the average of industry forecasters suggest. This is related to the 2 key factors which were taken into account in this study—depletion of existing iron ore deposits and targeted return on investments for new projects. In addition, escalated industry costs inflation is claimed to be the factor which will bolster nominal iron ore prices at high levels in the long-term. Using a Monte-Carlo simulation approach, confidence interval for future iron ore price was estimated.