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Models that treat innovations to the price of energy as predetermined with respect to U.S. macroeconomic aggregates are widely used in the literature. For example, it is common to order energy prices first in recursively identified VAR models of the transmission of energy price shocks. Because exactly identifying assumptions are inherently untestable, this approach in practice has required an act of faith in the empirical plausibility of the delay restriction used for identification. An alternative view that would invalidate such models is that energy prices respond instantaneously to macroeconomic news, implying that energy prices should be ordered last in recursively identified VAR models. In this paper, we propose...
Coalbed methane development has proliferated across much of the western United States. Campbell County, Wyoming, in the Powder River Basin is one area that has seem some of the highest amounts of this development, most of it occurring on land where the surface use is livestock grazing, resulting in conflicts over resource use. This thesis takes a grounded theory approach to understanding the meaning that the ranchers that operate on this land have attached to this development. In doing so, this paper argues that these ranchers form opinions and attitudes based on how CBM has affected “the ranching way of life” and not simply on the perceived opportunity for economic gain. It also argues that although objections...
Models that treat innovations to the price of energy as predetermined with respect to U.S. macroeconomic aggregates are widely used in the literature. For example, it is common to order energy prices first in recursively identified VAR models of the transmission of energy price shocks. Because exactly identifying assumptions are inherently untestable, this approach in practice has required an act of faith in the empirical plausibility of the delay restriction used for identification. An alternative view that would invalidate such models is that energy prices respond instantaneously to macroeconomic news, implying that energy prices should be ordered last in recursively identified VAR models. In this paper, we propose...
Since the beginning of 2008, natural gas exploration activities in the Marcellus Shale Formation have increased significantly in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—more than 2,349 wells have been drilled, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. In response to the increased number of well sites and concerns about the impact of the Marcellus Shale natural gas development activities on air quality, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP or Department) launched a short-term, screening-level air quality sampling initiative in the northcentral region in August 2010, culminating in December 2010. This report includes the findings of the screening air sampling surveys conducted...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Fossil fuel, clean, coal
Since the beginning of 2008, natural gas exploration activities in the Marcellus Shale Formation have increased significantly in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—more than 2,349 wells have been drilled, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. In response to the increased number of well sites and concerns about the impact of the Marcellus Shale natural gas development activities on air quality, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP or Department) launched a short-term, screening-level air quality sampling initiative in the northcentral region in August 2010, culminating in December 2010. This report includes the findings of the screening air sampling surveys conducted...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Fossil fuel, clean, coal
In many ways, the mountain west (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming) is an energy colony for the rest of the United States: it is rich in energy resources that are extracted to fuel economic growth in the wealthier and more populous coastal regions. Federal agencies and global corporations often behave as if the mountain west is a place to be exploited or managed for the benefit of customers and consumers elsewhere. Yet, the area. is not vast empty space with a limitless supply of natural resources, but rather a fast-growing region with a diverse economic base dependent on a limited supply of water. New decision processes and collaborations are slowly changing this situation,...
We have conducted a detailed analysis of costs associated with today’s technology for CO2 separation and capture at three types of power plants: integrated coal gasification combined cycles (IGCC), pulverized coal-fired simple cycles (PC), and natural gas-fired combined cycles (NGCC). The analysis was based on studies from the literature that analyzed the economics of capturing CO2 emitted at power plants. In this paper, we present a composite cost model and perform a sensitivity analysis to identify the cost-drivers for capture. We conclude that with new developments, CO2 capture and sequestration can become a cost-effective mitigation pathway.
Federally owned and managed public lands occupy approximately 30 percent of the land area of the United States, and anywhere from 50 percent to more than 80 percent of the land area of many of the western states. Determining the appropriate use of these lands involves balancing objectives related to economic, recreational, and conservation interests. This paper examines established and emerging conflicts within and across these objectives through both a narrative discussion of specific topics and a series of case studies. The authors find that new challenges, including pressures to devote portions of public lands to renewable energy project development and the multifaceted threats presented by climate change, will...
Coalbed methane is one of the most important and valuable natural resources in the Western United States. The natural gas that results from CBM development is the cleanest burning fossil fuel, and the extensive domestic supply makes it a central element of the national goal of a secure supply of energy. Demand for natural gas will continue to grow and CBM will play an increasingly larger role in meeting that demand. CBM production has expanded tremendously over the past decade, and the rapidity with which development has expanded has resulted in stresses and tension in affected communities. Development of this important energy resource must be balanced with a number of other important goals of protecting water,...
Since the beginning of 2008, natural gas exploration activities in the Marcellus Shale Formation have increased significantly in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—more than 2,349 wells have been drilled, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. In response to the increased number of well sites and concerns about the impact of the Marcellus Shale natural gas development activities on air quality, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP or Department) launched a short-term, screening-level air quality sampling initiative in the northcentral region in August 2010, culminating in December 2010. This report includes the findings of the screening air sampling surveys conducted...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Fossil fuel, clean, coal
Since the beginning of 2008, natural gas exploration activities in the Marcellus Shale Formation have increased significantly in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—more than 2,349 wells have been drilled, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. In response to the increased number of well sites and concerns about the impact of the Marcellus Shale natural gas development activities on air quality, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP or Department) launched a short-term, screening-level air quality sampling initiative in the northcentral region in August 2010, culminating in December 2010. This report includes the findings of the screening air sampling surveys conducted...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Fossil fuel, clean, coal
This report documents the various photovoltaic (PV) performance models and software developed and utilized by researchers at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in support of the Photovoltaics and Grid Integration Department. In addition to PV performance models, hybrid system and battery storage models are discussed. A hybrid system using other distributed sources and energy storage can help reduce the variability inherent in PV generation, and due to the complexity of combining multiple generation sources and system loads, these models are invaluable for system design and optimization. Energy storage plays an important role in reducing PV intermittency and battery storage models are used to understand the best...
Since the beginning of 2008, natural gas exploration activities in the Marcellus Shale Formation have increased significantly in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—more than 2,349 wells have been drilled, primarily in the southwest, northeast and northcentral regions. In response to the increased number of well sites and concerns about the impact of the Marcellus Shale natural gas development activities on air quality, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP or Department) launched a short-term, screening-level air quality sampling initiative in the northcentral region in August 2010, culminating in December 2010. This report includes the findings of the screening air sampling surveys conducted...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Fossil fuel, clean, coal
We have conducted a detailed analysis of costs associated with today’s technology for CO2 separation and capture at three types of power plants: integrated coal gasification combined cycles (IGCC), pulverized coal-fired simple cycles (PC), and natural gas-fired combined cycles (NGCC). The analysis was based on studies from the literature that analyzed the economics of capturing CO2 emitted at power plants. In this paper, we present a composite cost model and perform a sensitivity analysis to identify the cost-drivers for capture. We conclude that with new developments, CO2 capture and sequestration can become a cost-effective mitigation pathway.
Coalbed methane development has proliferated across much of the western United States. Campbell County, Wyoming, in the Powder River Basin is one area that has seem some of the highest amounts of this development, most of it occurring on land where the surface use is livestock grazing, resulting in conflicts over resource use. This thesis takes a grounded theory approach to understanding the meaning that the ranchers that operate on this land have attached to this development. In doing so, this paper argues that these ranchers form opinions and attitudes based on how CBM has affected “the ranching way of life” and not simply on the perceived opportunity for economic gain. It also argues that although objections...
Natural gas production from hydrocarbon rich shale formations, known as “shale gas,” is one of the most rapidly expanding trends in onshore domestic oil and gas exploration and production today. In some areas, this has included bringing drilling and production to regions of the country that have seen little or no activity in the past. New oil and gas developments bring change to the environmental and socio-economic landscape, particularly in those areas where gas development is a new activity. With these changes have come questions about the nature of shale gas development, the potential environmental impacts, and the ability of the current regulatory structure to deal with this development. Regulators, policy makers,...