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Recently, countries have been making intensive efforts to alleviate the burden on the environment and to make environmental conditions sustainable. In this context, our study aims to investigate the long-term impact of renewable energy consumption (REC) and human capital (HC) by considering the load capacity factor (LCF). We also investigate the long-term impact of economic growth (Y) and non-renewable energy consumption (NREC) on the LCF. In this context, we analyze annual data for the U.S. for the period 1965-2018 using the newly developed augmented ARDL (AARDL) approach. The long-term empirical results show the following. i) Increases in Y negatively affect LCF and deteriorate environmental quality. ii) Increases in NREC negatively affect LCF and accelerate the deterioration of environmental quality. iii) REC has no significant impact on environmental quality. iv) Increases in HC support the improvement of environmental quality. The empirical results show that contrary to expectations, renewable energy consumption does not have a significant impact on environmental quality in the U.S., whereas human capital is an important factor in improving environmental quality. In this context, US policymakers should pave the way for more investment in eco-friendly renewable energy investments and human capital to establish sustainable environmental quality. Policymakers should also take steps to reduce the use of fossil fuels., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The economic complexity index, which indicates the level of knowledge and skills needed in the production of the exported goods, is a measure of economic development. Some researchers have investigated the validity of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis by considering the effect of economic complexity on environmental pollution. This study, for the first time, examines the impact of economic complexity, globalization, and renewable and non-renewable energy consumption on both CO 2 emissions and ecological footprint within the framework of the EKC hypothesis in the USA. To this end, the combined cointegration test and three different estimators are utilized for the period from 1980 to 2016. The main finding of the study indicates that the inverted U-shaped EKC relationship between economic complexity and environmental pollution holds for the USA. In addition to this finding, globalization and renewable energy consumption play a dominant role in reducing environmental pollution, while non-renewable energy consumption contributing factor to environmental pressure. Overall, the outcomes indicate that increasing economic complexity helps to minimize environmental degradation after a threshold, and the US government can provide a better environment by using renewable energy sources and globalization. Graphical abstract.

This paper aims to investigate the responsiveness of renewable energy production (REP) to fluctuations in geopolitical risks, oil prices and economic policy uncertainty (EPU). It applies a cross-quantilogram framework to examine monthly data of the US economy for the period of 1986-2022. The findings illustrate the asymmetric effect of historical geopolitical risk (GPRH) on REP under long memory. The findings also hold after different subcategories of GPRH, including geopolitical threats and geopolitical acts, are considered. A positive shock in GPRH has the most decisive positive impact on REP when the policies are driven by both energy security and environmental commitments. A positive shock in GPRH can negatively impact REP when policies are driven by energy security causes only. EPU exerts strong negative effects on REP in bearish and bullish states of the market under medium and long memory across different measures of EPU. Dynamic connectedness analysis applying TVP-VAR method between pairwise variables indicates that net REP is a volatility receiver to the changes in GPRH, its subcomponents, oil prices and different measures of EPU., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

This paper investigates the impacts of economic (in)stability on carbon emissions and the role of renewable energy in these effects at the crossroads of accelerated climate change and rising global economic instability. The paper hypothesizes that these implications should be examined not by direct impacts across variables, but rather via indirect effects serially mediated by renewable energy consumption and economic growth. This paper analyzes the United States from January 1980 and April 2022 using manifest structural equation modeling. The paper reaches two major conclusions. First, there are clear distinctions between (i) the direct and indirect effects of economic stability, surrogated by inflation and policy interest rate, on carbon emissions, (ii) the symmetric and asymmetric indirect effects, and (iii) the roles of aggregate renewable energy and its components, such as biomass and hydropower energy use, in mediating these symmetric and asymmetric indirect effects. Second, renewable energy significantly reduces the carbon-increasing effects of inflation and interest rates. The paper contains proper policy suggestions based on the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigating the determinants of environmental sustainability has become a very attractive and popular area of research in response to the United Nations' sustainable development goals (SDGs) and COP26 targets. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to explore the effects of renewable energy, technological innovation, and the insurance market on environmental sustainability in the United States (US). This work contributes to the extant body of knowledge by exploring the effect of the insurance market on the load capacity factor (LC), specifically regarding the US. The LC tracks a certain ecological threshold by simultaneously comparing biocapacity and ecological footprint (EF), thereby providing a comprehensive empirical analysis of ecological sustainability determinants. However, this proxy includes the combined attributes of the demand and supply sides of ecological sustainability. Using the recently developed autoregressive distributed lag method, this research reveals that the insurance market adversely affects the LC in the US. The overall outcomes highlight the positive role of renewable energy, technological innovation, and the insurance market in achieving the SDGs and COP26 targets. Policy recommendations for policymakers concerning promoting renewable energy, green innovation activities, the green insurance market, and ecological regulations are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the last twenty years, the integration of Renewable Energy Resources (RESs) projects has become feasible in many electricity markets around the globe. The primary objective of these developments is to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. In many countries, RESs integration projects could make a profit according to the subsidies policies of each electricity market. The United States (U.S.) electricity market is considered the most competitive one in the world. Hence, RES integration is subject to many financial and technical factors that eventually affect the integration process. Since the electricity production from RESs in the U.S. electricity market has become cost-effective, many projects have been implemented in a short period. In this paper, a discussion on the opportunities and challenges of renewable energy integration in the U.S. electricity market is demonstrated. The research starts with an overview of the electricity market in the U.S. with policies and bylaws governing the RESs integration. Some factors might empower the renewable energy deployment. Environmental aspects, government subsidies, regulations, and marginal cost price increase the renewable energy opportunities in the U.S. electricity market. By contrast, the paper discussed many challenges faced by renewable energy such as generation variability, intermittency, environmental issues, and capital and reserve cost. Such challenges might affect the electricity market prices. This paper provides an insight to the developed plans to implement RESs and control GHG emissions. In addition, corresponding policies to encourage RES integration and their technical impacts are highlighted. Restructuring the market and developing Renewable Energy Sources technologies are recommended to increase renewable energy market share in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzes time- and frequency-varying impacts of hydroelectricity energy consumption, natural gas energy consumption, and economic growth on environmental sustainability proxied by carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions in the United States of America (the US) for the period 1965/Q1 to 2020/Q4. This study is the first of its kind to contribute to the current literature by analyzing dynamic relationships among these variables in the short-, medium-, and long-term at different time frequencies in the framework of a multivariate correlation, hence providing a more comprehensive picture about the impacts of these effective factors on CO 2 emissions. To meet the objectives of the study, Wavelet local multiple local (WLMC), which is a recent novel methodology developed by Polanco-Martínez et al. (2020), is applied. Moreover, the Wavelet coherence (WTC) approach is used for robustness check. The outcomes provide fresh insights into the long-term dynamic correlations among hydroelectricity energy consumption, natural gas energy consumption, economic growth, and CO 2 emissions. The study discovers a robust positive co-movement between natural gas energy consumption and CO 2 emissions and a negative correlation between hydro energy consumption and CO 2 emissions that is the most intense on the long-term frequencies. Furthermore, economic growth causes CO 2 emissions, which is evidenced by a positive relationship between both factors at short- and long-term time-frequencies. Supported by the outcomes of the study, the authors urge to suggest crucial insights and policy points for the US policymakers to shift from fossil energy to renewable energy sources to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG-7 and SDG-13, since they induce lower emissions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The reduction in oil prices might make crude oil a cheaper alternative to renewable energy (RE). Given this, the present paper examines the effect of fluctuation of oil prices on the use of RE in the United States (US) during the period 1970 to 2018. We constructed two nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) models to examine the effect of the positive and negative oil price shocks on the use of RE in the US. The RE consumption is taken as the dependent variable and the gross domestic product (GDP), Brent crude prices, population density, trade openness, and price index as independent variables. The result revealed that the rise in crude oil price, GDP, and population density will increase RE use in the short run and in the long run as well. Moreover, the study finds that any decrease in oil prices will decrease RE use in the short run and its effect will eventually diminish in the long run. On the policy front, it is suggested that US should raise its energy security by reducing its dependency on imported crude oil and increase the role of RE through the imposition of taxes on oil and increase the base of production and consumption through a series of measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Industry-Defined Fundamental Research program is designed to bring together industrial and academic researchers to develop basic science in areas important for the success of American industry. In September 2009, the National Science Foundation awarded $1.2 million to fund a pilot of the program. With those funds, the Industrial Research Institute has identified key areas of concern and solicited white papers in those areas; the white papers outline how further awards could be used to develop basic science around central questions in the fields of coatings and adhesives, materials interfaces, renewable energy, renewable feed-stocks, and nanotechnology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper reviews the green hydrogen uptake policies in the United States and the European Union. While the EU has a rather broad public support strategy that envisages the entire hydrogen value chain, the U.S. policies are more focused on hydrogen research hubs and subsidies having electric vehicle applications. From the experience of the solar and wind power rollout of the past three decades, we know that the subsidization schemes of the end product play an important role in the transition to renewables. These kinds of subsidization schemes are still lacking for clean hydrogen both in the EU and the U.S. This paper provides a brief overview of selected subsidization schemes from other renewables markets, which are then applied to define an exemplary subsidization path to empower large-scale growth in a market for green hydrogen. Here is proposed a long-term subsidization scheme – deemed as an adequate strategy for the expansion of clean hydrogen in an electricity mix. The suggested exemplary subsidization path recommends shifting from feed-in tariffs to direct marketing with market premiums once a certain threshold is reached, while both can be flanked by the issuance of a Guarantee of Origin for green hydrogen so that there is one market for hydrogen and another market for the certificates. • -A long-term subsidization scheme for the rollout of green hydrogen in the electricity mixes is proposed. • -An exemplary subsidization path to empower large-scale growth in a market for green hydrogen is drafted. • -U.S. and EU are used as case studies to capture lessons for subsidization of green hydrogen economy uptake. • -The U.S. has more centralized green hydrogen rollout policies, whereas the EU has a wider policy toolkit. • -Shifting from FIT to direct marketing with market premiums is key once a certain pre-defined threshold is reached. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating elements from industrial organization economics and the resource-based view-coupled with path dependence as firm resources evolve over time, this paper suggests that deregulation may not always provide greater opportunities for incumbents, and the extent to which incumbents differentiate on the green dimension may be constrained by their prior resources, in particular, capabilities with respect to brown technologies and experiences with green technologies. Using data on U.S. investor-owned electric utilities from 1992 to 2008, this paper finds that deregulation is associated with lower entry into the renewable generation market by incumbents compared to regulation. More capable firms using brown technologies, for example, coal-based generation, are less likely to enter the renewable generation market. Also, incumbents are responsive to actual, not latent, demand for renewable energy. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goals of this paper are to examine whether the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) holds and to investigate whether renewable energy consumption can decrease CO 2 emissions in the USA using monthly data spanning the period 2000:M01-2018:M07. For these purposes, the paper employs a cointegration test with a regime shift and observes the long-run coefficients before and after the regime shift. The findings support the presence of the EKC. The findings also indicate that renewable energy consumption has negative effects on CO 2 emissions, while these effects are greater when the share of renewable energy consumption in total energy consumption is higher in the USA. Theoretical and practical implications for these findings are discussed.

The challenge of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) has stimulated great attention among policymakers and scholars in recent past, and a number of STIRPAT (Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology) studies on carbon emissions have been conducted. This paper contributes to that literature by: (i) studying per capita GHG emissions in the United States (US) adopting STIRPAT modeling framework; (ii) employing new explanatory factors like cattle population density, political willingness to address environmental problems, and educational attainment; and (iii) investigating whether emissions elasticities of various factors vary within the US or not. State-level panel data over the period 1990–2014 are used, and partitioning of the sample is done with respect to two controlling factors: an indicator of political support to environmentalism and educational attainment. Results of heterogeneous slope parameters panel data models indicate that cattle density and affluence are major drivers of per capita GHG emissions in the continental US. We find strong evidence of heterogeneity in emissions elasticities across partitioned samples. Our grouping analysis suggests that in a diverse country like US, policymakers should not focus on the average relationships dictated by a single STIRPAT equation, but should account for regional differences if they want accuracy and higher effectiveness in climate policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the spatial heterogeneity of landowners' willingness to supply three bioenergy crops: switchgrass, Miscanthus, and willow, in the northeastern United States. Spatial heterogeneity might arise for several reasons. For example, landowners closer to bioenergy processing plants might be more likely to be willing to supply bioenergy crops, and landowners who are more willing to supply bioenergy crops may be spatially clustered because they share similar land attributes, demographics, experiences, and/or values. Using high‐resolution GIS data related to the location of pellet plants utilizing bioenergy crops and survey data related to landowners' characteristics including spatial location, we estimate a spatial probit model to explain the variation in individual‐specific reservation prices (RPs)—the feedstock price at which landowners become willing to supply a bioenergy crop. We find that respondents' RP is lower the closer they live to their nearest pellet plant and spatial dependency is only present for switchgrass supply. We also identify three economic hotspots (areas with high potential supply and low RPs) for each bioenergy crop. We believe that bioenergy supply chains could be developed around these hotspots. Identifying economic hotspots and reservation price for biomass is important in establishing the supply chain for bioenergy. To address this, we apply a spatial econometric model coupled with geospatial hotspot analysis. We identify the price gap currently existing in the bioenergy supply chain, accounting for spatial dependence. Also, we locate potential sites to establish a bioenergy plant, considering biomass yield and price. These results are useful for bioenergy businesses and policymakers aiming to promote bioenergy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change, originating from greenhouse gas emissions, yields profound implications such as escalated temperatures, severe storms, disruptions in food supply chains, and amplified seismic activity, particularly impacting arid regions. As the world's largest economy and the second-largest CO2 emitter, the United States actively leads initiatives aimed at addressing environmental challenges and aligning with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7 and 13. This study delves into the determinants shaping renewable energy consumption and CO2 emissions within the United States, aiming to elucidate their pivotal role in advancing carbon neutrality efforts. Using quarterly data spanning from 1990 to 2020, this investigation employs the time-varying TVP-SV-VAR model to dissect the dynamic interplay among these variables. The findings reveal intricate connections across short, medium, and long-term periods: renewable energy adoption, eco-innovations, and uncertainties in climate policy were observed to mitigate CO2 emissions. Conversely, financial development exhibited a consistent association with increased CO2 emissions across all timeframes. Additionally, the progression of renewable energy sources showcased responsiveness to climate policy uncertainties, eco-innovations, and financial development across each timeframe. These outcomes hold substantial implications for the United States' pursuit of carbon neutrality goals, emphasizing the pivotal role of promoting renewable energy initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The climate change is one of the leading problems in the today's world. The rise of the renewable energy meets the sustainable growth objectives since it can decelerate the climate change. For this purpose, this paper investigates the relationship between the renewable energy consumption and the economic growth in the United States (USA). Theoretically, the paper constructs the growth model that captures the effects of the economic complexity indicator as a measure of capabilities and productivity for exporting the "complex" (high value-added) products. Empirically, the paper uses the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) estimations and observes that both the economic complexity and the renewable energy consumption lead to a higher rate of economic growth in the USA for the period from 1965 to 2016. The paper also discusses the potential policy implications of the results for achieving the sustainable growth objectives.

This paper studies the development of renewable energy (RE) in the U.S. by examining the capacity to generate electricity from renewable sources. RE capacity exhibits a U-shaped relationship with per capita income, similar to other metrics for environmental quality (EQ). To explain this phenomenon, I consider several of the environmental Kuznets curve theories that describe the relationship between income and environmental quality (Y-EQ), including evolving property rights, increased demand for improved EQ, and changing economic composition. The results fail to provide support for the Y-EQ theories. I further consider the alternative hypothesis that increases in unemployment lead to increases in relative RE capacity, suggesting that promoting RE projects as a potential job creator is one of the main drivers of RE projects. The results imply that lagged unemployment is a significant predictor of relative RE capacity, particularly for states with a large manufacturing share of GDP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microinverter-based photovoltaic (PV) systems now represent about 8% of the U.S. residential market, and offer many advantages including safety, performance, and simplified installation. The next-generation of PV microinverter will include more ancillary functions to support grid stability and reliability in more distributed generation smart-grid systems. A commercial ready PV microinverter not only focuses on efficiency and cost, but also on reliability, manufacturability, compliance of various grid-code, and electromagnetic interference regulations. This paper presents a detailed design and development process of a microinverter system from concept all the way to final commercial-ready prototype. Various design tradeoffs such as topology, control, filter solutions and power supplies, and mechanical packaging are provided. The required prototype testing and final system field tests are also presented. The presented design and test process intends to accelerate the future microinverter system design and development toward a commercial ready product. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The benefits of biomass as an alternative fossil fuel can be realized mainly through biomass consumption. This paper examines the growth rate and spatial patterns of biomass consumption in the United States (hereafter US) during the period 2000–2012, using the SLOPE index, Moran's I and local Moran's I. Results indicate that US States show either slow growth or slow decline in biomass consumption during the period 2000–2012. The number of States that have slow growth in biomass consumption is slightly larger than the number of States showing slow decline. The pattern of growth rate of biomass consumption revealed by the SLOPE index and the observed pattern of the temporal variation of biomass consumption ensures that the SLOPE index can catch the growth rate of biomass consumption. This pattern does not align with the increased annual investment in biomass, indicating that the investment in biomass does not flow down to the biomass industry effectively. The pattern of growth rate of biomass consumption will provide additional evidence for the debates about the effectiveness of State renewable energy policy, and demonstrates an urgent need for appropriate State renewable energy policies. There is a High-High spatial cluster around the Southeast of the US and a Low-Low spatial cluster in the Middle of the US in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. The regional spatial cluster in biomass consumption has somewhat relationship with the growth rate of biomass consumption, which can help the understanding of the growth rate of biomass consumption. • The SLOPE index is used to investigate the growth rate of biomass consumption. • The pattern of growth rate does not align with the increased annual investment. • There is an urgent need for appropriate State renewable energy policies. • There are regional clusters in biomass consumption in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. • The regional spatial cluster has somewhat relationship with the growth rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose |!|#8211; This paper aims to present a forecast for renewable energy production in the USA. Growth curves are used to conduct the forecasts.Design/methodology/approach |!|#8211; The analysis is based upon a literature review, supplemented by collection of secondary data. The study then focuses on applying the Pearl growth curve.Findings |!|#8211; The authors|!|#39; results show that biomass energy production is growing the fastest followed by geothermal and wind. Additionally, the forecast for solar energy production shows little to no growth over the next two decades.Research limitations/implications |!|#8211; If the US government hopes to achieve its goals in renewable energy, considerable funding and incentives will have to be put forth to accelerate the growth of renewable energy. Since the biomass technology is already growing nicely it makes sense to put the additional resources behind the other three technologies to close the 10.3 percent gap being forecasted. The government also needs to put more funding into dual renewable plants such as wind or solar combines with pumped hydro, this will ensure environmental and reliability are both maintained. Finally, for renewable energies to be competitive in the long term, considerable research needs to go into driving down the cost so there is not a need for subsidies.Originality/value |!|#8211; This study provides value in providing a forecast for expected future growth for renewable energy sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyze those US colleges and universities that are participating in the Green Power Partnership (GPP). GPP is a voluntary environmental program initiated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2001 to help increase the use of green power (electricity produced from solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, biomass, and low-impact small hydroelectric sources) among US organizations. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on literature in voluntary environmental programs to develop an understanding as to what types of campuses might be most likely to partner with the US Government to be leaders in the use of green power. It then characterizes partner campuses based on institutional, geographical, financial, student specific and sustainability variables. The study draws attention to the GPP participants that are also signatories of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). This provides leeway into future research that would benefit from investigating the motivations for and constraints to such dual commitments. Findings – The analysis reveals that GPP partners are primarily private, four-year institutions located in the northeast region. These campuses show a high level of awareness for the environment and vested interest on part of the students, as evidenced by the dominance of environmental studies in the curriculum, student-run organizations dedicated to sustainability issues, and adoption of green fees. Further, they are actively involved in the generation and use of electricity from renewable sources and more than two-thirds have also signed the PCC. Originality/value – This study is the first to explore EPA's GPP program with respect to the participation of higher education institutions (HEIs) in this program. It serves as a pioneer study, exploring a voluntary partnership between the US Government and the higher education sector and contributes to the understanding of the vital role of higher education in the development and deployment of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies and compares the actual historic solar photovoltaic (PV) installation data in Japan and the United States and proposes two deployment models to account for the differences. Deployment, along with research, development and demonstration, constitutes what is known as the RD3 (PCAST — President's Council of Advances in Science and Technology, United States) innovative chain of a new technology. Japan deploys PV focusing on the niche of utility grid-tied small-scale system (90 per cent of which is standardised roof-top residential PV system) using highly integrated value chain; this seems to draw upon her strong manufacturing culture and associated social technology and institutions for suppliers-dominated innovations. The United States deploys PV as a broadly defined innovation emphasising user-oriented customisation in both on and off grid, residential and industrial applications using small independent and intermediary system integrators. Empirical analysis of the diffusion patterns in the grid-tied small system category in respective contexts suggests that Japan's institutions seem to match her mass deployment strategy while the United States' combination of fragmented industry structure and diversity deployment gives rise to a complex diffusion pattern calling for continual institutional innovation or co-evolution. Our research, therefore, highlights that commercialisation of new technology or technical change, in general, is not an autonomous process and has strong institutional underpinnings. We formalise and generalise this "match" (Perez, 1983) argument in accordance with Nelson and Sampat's (2001) framework of physical technology vs social technology and their interactions. Some potential future extensions regarding utilities for this model are then highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an assessment of the enhanced geothermal system (EGS) resource base of the conterminous United States, using constructed temperature at depth maps. The temperature at depth maps were computed from 3 to 10 km, for every km. The methodology is described. Factors included are sediment thickness, thermal conductivity variations, distribution of the radioactive heat generation and surface temperature based on several geologic models of the upper 10 km of the crust. EGS systems are extended in this paper to include coproduced geothermal energy, and geopressured resources. A table is provided that summarizes the resource base estimates for all components of the EGS geothermal resource. By far, the conduction-dominated components of EGS represent the largest component of the U.S. resource. Nonetheless, the coproduced resources and geopressured resources are large and significant targets for short and intermediate term development. There is a huge resource base between the depths of 3 and 8 km, where the temperature reaches 150–250°?C. Even if only 2%of the conventional EGS resource is developed, the energy recovered would be equivalent to roughly 2,500 times the annual consumption of primary energy in the U.S. in 2006. Temperatures above 150°C at those depths are more common in the active tectonic regions of the western conterminous U.S., but are not confined to those areas. In the central and eastern U.S. there are identified areas of moderate size that are of reasonable grade and probably small areas of much higher grade than predicted by this analyses. However because of the regional (the grid size is 5′ × 5′) scale of this study such potentially promising sites remain to be identified. Several possible scenarios for EGS development are discussed. The most promising and least costly may to be developments in abandoned or shut-in oil and gas fields, where the temperatures are high enough. Because thousands of wells are already drilled in those locations, the cost of producing energy from such fields could be significantly lowered. In addition many hydrocarbon fields are producing large amounts of co-produced water, which is necessary for geothermal development. Although sustainability is not addressed in this study, the resource is so large that in at least some scenarios of development the geothermal resource is sustainable for long periods of time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the leader of the largest economy, President of the United States has substantive influence on addressing climate change problems. However, a presidential election is often dominated by issues other than energy problems. This paper focuses on the 2016 presidential election, and examines the energy plans proposed by the leading Democrat and Republican candidates. Our data from the Iowa caucus survey in January 2016 suggests that voters were more concerned about terrorism and economic issues than environmental issues. We then compare the Democratic and Republican candidate's view of America's energy future, and evaluate their proposed renewable energy targets. We find that the view on renewable energy is polarized between Democratic and Republican candidates, while candidates from both parties agree on the need for energy efficiency. Results from our ordinal least squares regression models suggests that Democratic candidates have moderate to ambitious goals for developing solar and other renewables. The Republican candidates favor fossil fuels and they choose not to provide any specific target for developing renewable energy. In addition, this trend of party polarization has grown more significant when compared with the past three presidential elections. Our observation suggests that energy policies need to be discussed more often regarding the diversification and decarbonization of the nation's energy system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Airports are continuously looking for alternative revenue streams to increase their competitiveness and grow their business.1 They are also exploring ways to use technology to run more efficiently and achieve meaningful cost savings. New revenue and savings can be passed on to anchor tenants in the form of more competitive rates and charges.2 Renewable energy has become an increasingly cost-effective business option as a result of technological advancement, market maturity and public sector investment.3 Airports have particular characteristics that enhance the financial viability of on-site renewable energy, particularly for solar photovoltaics (PV ).4 Airport land and buildings can provide suitable sites for solar facilities that otherwise do not generate financial benefit. The open landscape and geographic position of airports necessary for safe airport management also facilitates the capture of natural resources that fuel renewable energy. In addition, renewable energy can directly supply an airport's on-site energy consumption needs, defraying costs in the future as off-site energy purchasing is curtailed. While all renewable energy projects offer opportunity for airports to gain financial benefits, the ownership structure options affect how individual projects can be developed and their result.1 This paper reviews the ownership structures for airport solar projects, describes the financial and public policy factors that affect the selection of such options, and provides examples of projects that have been developed at airports in the USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey-based research study was conducted to analyze sustainability practices of large U.S. corporations in their domestic and international operations. Large U.S. corporations were slow to address global environmental challenges, but a majority of them now demonstrate a clear understanding of their responsibilities. Most large U.S. corporations are proactively involved in sustainability and environmentally friendly measures, and their involvement at home is more intense than abroad. Analyses revealed that U.S. corporations engage in eight activities related to sustainability: investing in energy-efficient methods, generating electricity from solar power, generating electricity from wind power, using biofuels, trading carbon credits, supporting environmental organizations, generating electricity from biomass, and generating electricity from hydropower. Of these, only generating electricity from biomass and hydropower were not significantly different with respect to U.S. corporations' foreign and domestic implementation. This paper represents the first attempt to determine whether and how U.S. corporations' efforts to promote sustainability differ with respect to their operational locus (domestic or overseas). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the wind industry has undergone considerable development worldwide, thanks mainly to state support for renewable energy embodied in various standards and initiatives. However, the situation differs significantly among the main world producers of electricity from wind power, and in some, we can find incomplete energy policies and regulatory frameworks, which have led to very different economic and social outcomes. In this paper, we present a comparative study of wind policies (based on a multidisciplinary approach) in the leading countries of Europe, Asia and America, in order to establish a comprehensive framework for the sector's future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ocean plays host to a vast array of sources of energy. These energies simply need to be developed efficiently and effectively, as well as harmonized and collected. This paper will present and discuss two major sources of sustainable ocean energy—wind and wave—which can be combined effectively into one multi-purpose structure. These dynamic structures are emerging as useful in many international settings. However, the United States' (U.S.) areas are slow to adopt. This research presents a hierarchical analysis for decision makers to utilize in strategic offshore location planning with regard to these platforms. Surprisingly, the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) proves to be in a favorable position for entities considering use of such multi-purpose platforms. • Combinatory analysis of energy collection modes. • Provides a conceptual framework using a hierarchical analysis tool. • Optimal location decisions for U.S. coastal regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Residential consumers in the U.S. have demonstrated a growing interest in rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems, resulting in increased adoption over the last decade. However, this has diminished utility revenues, and policymakers have expressed concerns about inequitable consumer access to publicly-funded rooftop PV adoption incentives. In response to these concerns, policymakers and utility companies are changing their policies to discourage rooftop PV adoption. Alternative renewable energy models, such as utility-provided community solar programs, offer a potential solution. However, when designing such programs, it is important to consider the potential impacts on different system stakeholders, including utilities, policymakers, and solar installers. This paper describes an agent-based model that predicts the performance of different residential distributed solar models with respect to these stakeholders' objectives. In this model, consumer agents residing in an urban utility territory decide in each time-step whether they will adopt a particular renewable energy model, and the impacts of their adoption decisions on stakeholder performance metrics are captured over time. Simulation results suggest that if community solar program premium prices are set appropriately, all stakeholders can benefit: the utility can recover part of its revenue losses even as rooftop PV adoption increases, solar installers' businesses can thrive, and increased renewable energy adoption can be achieved equitably. The proposed modeling methodology can help to inform design decisions of distributed solar energy models that avoid benefiting some stakeholders at the unnecessary expense of others. • An agent-based model is developed to study solar adoption in the residential sector. • Consumer adoption behavior is studied for multiple solar-based energy models. • System-level approach with key energy stakeholders' objectives is considered. • Results show all stakeholders can benefit within a mutually beneficial arrangement. • Empirical examples are provided in support of the simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the detrimental effects of consuming nonrenewable energy gain the attention of the United States populace, policymakers have shifted their attention to implementing policies that support the development of solar photovoltaic markets. We use the OLS estimator to determine which policy incentives are more effective at increasing the electricity generated from solar photovoltaic at the state level. Policy incentives analyzed in this paper include subsidies, tax incentives, renewable portfolio standards, solar carveouts, interconnection standards, and power purchase agreements. Additionally, we utilize interaction terms to determine if a state's policy portfolio is more effective when the portfolio contains policies targeted toward both creating and expanding the market, as opposed to only creating or expanding the market. The results suggest that renewable portfolio standards are the most effective policy incentives, and policy portfolios including both market creation and expansion policies can be more effective at developing solar photovoltaic markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Since the mid 1990s, after the pacification of Central America, the region has experienced a sustained economic growth. Additionally, the Central American governments have been able to increase the population׳s access to electricity, e.g. the percentage of Central American population with access to electricity in 1995 and 2010 was 59% and 86%, respectively. The aforementioned reasons and the need to reduce electricity costs in order to remain competitive in a global economy have produced a transformation of the power scenario in Central America. The present paper presents a review about the power generation scenario of Central America within the framework of the new Regional Interconnected Electric System. It also briefly analyzes the trends of the power generation profile with a special emphasis on the renewable energy sources. As it can be inferred from the analysis presented in this paper, the Central American power scenario will mainly be shaped by the participation of the private sector and the development of the recently created regional electricity market. Additionally, it is clear the willingness of all the Central American countries to move away from oil-fired power generation. The lack of up-front capital needed to develop large renewable energy projects (mainly hydropower) can favor the development of gas-fired and/or coal-fired power stations. Nevertheless, the regional electricity market may favor the viability of large power generation projects. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Wind energy refers to the process of creating electricity using the wind, or air flows that occur naturally in the earth's atmosphere. Considered as a free and low-carbon energy, wind energy source has handy the attention of decision makers around the world. Wind energy has the possibilities of reducing the worlds dependence on fossil fuels and has a very huge potential to impart sustainable development of both climate and energy. This paper is focusing on the wind energy potentials of the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Region of the United States, as a strategic location to develop wind farms that would help mitigate climate change. We used a GIS based approach in identifying suitable locations for wind farms and assessing wind energy potentials as a mitigation to climate change by using a weighted overlay of geospatial layers corresponding to these criteria. Results showed that a wind turbine runs practically emissions-free for 20 years, a viable alternative to burning polluting fossil fuels that offset all emissions within the first 6 months of operation. The Atlantic OCS Region present us with enormous wind energy potentials. Findings in this paper projects that from 2020, wind power alone would save 9.25 billion tons of CO2 every year. On average, each kWh of wind power generated would avoid 600 grams of CO2 (Global Wind Energy Council). Renewable energy would help mitigate climate change in an excellent way. However, we need sustainability in order to ensure a sustainable future for generations to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the development of an anthropological understanding of the emerging political economies of renewable energy in the contemporary United States. It explores efforts to develop place-based, local systems of renewable energy production and places them in the context of a larger history of the political economy and social construction of U. S. energy systems. Marked by emancipatory discourses of local self-reliance, decentralization, ecological sustainability, energy security, and community-scale governance, contemporary renewable energy initiatives bear a strong resemblance to the small-scale, grassroots energy actions that emerged during the energy crises of the 1970s. Both past and current local renewable energy efforts are also deeply embedded within and subject to contemporary regimes of environmental governance, ecological modernization, and neoliberal responses to ecological crises. Using emerging energy initiatives in Washington, DC as a case study, I discuss three key elements of the political and social construction of contemporary local renewable energy production-ownership, governance, and sustainable urban place-making-and examine the problematic theme of 'localism' that links them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • We analyze the economic value of a U.S windfarm using long-term LCOE information. • Long-term LCOE of wind energy is obtained from two decades of history. • Monte Carlo and Risk-Neutral valuation is used to valuate a reference windfarm. • Managerial flexibilities and generation cost uncertainty make windfarms more valuable. • Real Option accounts for the flexibility of decision-making with stochastic costs. Abstract Renewable energies are a natural replacement for conventional or fossil fuel energy generation. One of these sources, wind energy, has exhibited significant cost reductions during the last decades. Even though this historical cost reduction trend is well known in the industry and in the academia, information on this cost trend and volatility has been scarcely incorporated in previous works, thus a natural concern arises when assessing their influence on the economic valuation of wind farms. Moreover, wind projects are modular in size and have a short time-to-market, providing a valuable managerial flexibility to defer investment under non-attractive market conditions, such as high development cost scenarios. Traditional evaluation tools often consider those scenarios, wrongly assuming that wind-developers would move forward with the project under such conditions. Accordingly, this paper analyzes the effect of incorporating both generation cost history and investment flexibility in the valuation of wind farms in the United States using Real Options methodology. Taking two decades of cost data and a reference wind farm, this "uncertainty-flexibility" effect is incorporated and valued, finding that the value of the wind project is 14.2% larger than the one neglecting such effect – where cost stochasticity and managerial flexibility are ignored. Therefore, traditional tools for project valuation, such as discounted cash flow and scenario analysis can no longer solely be used, as they do not properly account for the cost reduction trend, uncertainty, and managerial flexibility that a wind farm could face. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The focus of this paper is to analyse the determinants of wind energy development in the United States and how procedural and regulatory frameworks influence the deployment of wind power facilities. The empirical analysis uses statistical regression models integrating geospatial, macroeconomic and socio-environmental control variables. Using wind penetration as well as wind capacity additions as dependent variable permits a more differentiated analysis of both absolute and relative growth factors. This enables a precise assessment of state-to-state variations in permitting, zoning and siting procedures that wind developers have to clear before being authorised to start construction. Quantifying the number of state-level financial support measures and various permitting and regulatory process stages allowed for a more comprehensive assessment of administrative barriers to wind energy development than prior research studies. The results indicate a partial reversal of previous findings that showed that a high quantity of state-level regulations negatively affects wind capacity additions. Exogenous factors such as the ratio of in-state federal lands, population density, and especially wind energy potential, as well as federal statutes and incentives remain the main drivers of wind capacity additions and overall wind energy penetration. Contrasting prior literature, the influence of localised financial incentives or regulatory approval procedures appears to be minor; therefore streamlining national policies and incentives at the federal level might prove more effective than promoting wind development at the state level. We point out that future research should also examine the role of quality of state-level regulations in addition to quantity. Highlights • Most up-to-date United States state-level study using recent data sets from 2010 to 2016. • Number of financial incentives & regulatory measures are weak growth indicators. • Overall wind potential is the strongest driver of wind development. • Novel dependent variable for wind penetration enables relative growth analysis. • Quantity of environmental regulations did not influence energy growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - As the interest in renewable energy increases and the number of federal and state incentives to support renewable energy has also grown in recent years, it seems worthwhile to explore the economics of using small wind energy systems to offset electricity costs on farms. The purpose of this paper is to explore the economics of small wind turbine installations on a dairy in Michigan through case study analysis. Design/methodology/approach - An Excel-based capital budgeting model is developed that contains two sub-modules: one that estimates the value of the wind energy based on the measured wind resource, and an investment module that includes factors such as investment cost, financing parameters, sales of electricity; grants and tax credits and tax information. Cases using 20 and 50kW turbine systems are analyzed. Findings - The results of the case studies show that in a favorable wind resource, the federal tax and United States Department of Agriculture incentives as well as state policies such as net metering can make wind turbines a good investment with an internal rate of return of 12.5 percent in this example. However, if the wind resource is not sufficient, even favorable renewable energy policies will not offset the lost value of the power generation, and thus a wind turbine will be a poor investment decision. Farm businesses should carefully consider all factors before investing in a wind turbine. Originality/value - This paper is the first in recent years to combine capital budgeting analysis, wind resource data and the implications of federal and state policies to determine if small wind turbines are a sound investment decision for farm businesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - Anaerobic digestion (AD) of livestock waste is a potential source of renewable energy and can reduce the methane emissions associated with livestock waste storage. Because AD is capital intensive, lenders will play a key role in the adoption of this technology. The purpose of this paper is to describe some of the barriers that currently make lenders reluctant to finance AD systems and provide recommendations for public policies that would reduce these barriers, making financing more available and encouraging farmers to adopt digester systems. Design/methodology/approach - This paper describes some of the barriers that currently make lenders reluctant to finance AD systems and makes recommendations for public policies that would reduce these barriers, thus making finance available. Findings - AD systems face a number of financial barriers which make lenders reluctant to finance them. Many of these barriers can be overcome by adopting policies and programs designed to improve the understanding of the financial situation associated with AD adoption and establishing markets that reward livestock operations for achieving the benefits associated with AD installation. Some of the more important potential solutions include developing mechanisms to collect and analyze data associated with AD system economics and developing markets that reward livestock operations for producing the non-market outputs of renewable energy and methane emission reductions. Originality/value - The ability to attract financing is a key barrier to the widespread adoption of anaerobic digester systems. This paper describes these challenges and identifies solutions which would reduce these barriers and lead to greater adoption of AD on the US livestock operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Contrary to the case of the United States where a systematic management of the RD&D on lignocellulosic ethanol prevails, in Europe the research works remain fragmented despite the efforts made by the European Union and in few member states. In most of the European countries, sustainable lignocellulosic resources may not be widely available in the future for bioethanol production due to the possible competition between several potential usages. Thus the actual deployment of the lignocellulosic bioethanol in Europe will depend on the opportunity costs of biomass on one side and on the prices of ethanol and gasoline on the other side. While the papers on lignocellulosic ethanol often emphasize technology progress, this review paper also addresses policy measures. It is found that, especially in Europe where security of oil supply will be lower in long term, the policy instruments should explicitly reward the higher value of lignocellulosic ethanol compared to first the generation ethanol and gasoline. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Geothermal exploration is typically limited to high-grade hydrothermal reservoirs that are usually found in the western United States, yet large areas with subsurface temperatures above 150°C at economic drilling depths can be found east of the Rocky Mountains. The object of this paper is to present new heat flow data and to evaluate the geothermal potential of Texas and adjacent areas. The new data show that, west of the Ouachita Thrust Belt, the heat flow values are lower than east of the fault zone. Basement heat flow values for the Palo Duro and Fort Worth Basins are below 50 mW/m2 while, in the frontal zone of the belt, they can exceed 60 mW/m2. Further east, along the Balcones fault system the heat flow is in general higher than 55 mW/m2. The eastern most heat flow sites are in Louisiana and they show very high heat flow (over 80 mW/m2), which is associated with the apparently highly radioactive basement of the Sabine uplift. The geothermal resource in this area is large and diverse, and can be divided in high grade (temperature above 150°C) convective systems, conductive based enhanced geothermal systems and geothermal/geopressured systems. One of the most attractive areas east of the cordillera extends from eastern Texas across Louisiana and Arkansas to western Mississippi. Here temperatures reach exploitation range at depths below 4 km, and tapping such a resource from shut in hydrocarbon fields is relatively easy. The initial costs of the development can be greatly reduced if existing hydrocarbon infrastructure is used, and therefore using shut-in hydrocarbon fields for geothermal purposes should not be neglected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The American electric utility industry is entering a moment of transition. Once viewed as a stable and secure consortium of publicly regulated monopolies that produce and distribute electricity, the industry has weathered market restructuring only to face the ever-present risk of natural disasters, price fluctuations, terrorist attacks, and blackouts. This paper uses five criteria—technical feasibility, cost, negative externalities, reliability, and security—to evaluate the broad portfolio of energy technologies available to American electricity policymakers. Upon close inspection, energy efficiency practices, renewable energy systems, and small-scale distributed generation technologies appear to offer many advantages over large and centralized nuclear and fossil fueled generators. Contrary to the mimetic commentary produced by the media, these three approaches would present policymakers a superior alternative for curbing electricity demand, minimizing the risk of fuel interruptions and shortages, helping improve the fragile transmission network, and reducing environmental harm [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy can address rising demand for energy, environmental protection, energy security, and job creation. This paper assesses resource, economic, social, and political drivers for the adoption of renewable energy. Analysis of the data collected from over 100 interviews with utility managers reveals that production tax credits significantly influence the percent of renewable energy in a utility's portfolio. The availability of renewable energy resources, economic drivers, social influences, and political drivers such as renewable portfolio standards and government grants are not significant drivers. Understanding these drivers can help electric utilities, governments, and other stakeholders with their efforts to reap the benefits of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With electric generation responsible for 41 percent of U.S anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from energy use, development of clean energy sources is essential if the United States is to reduce release of greenhouse gases and slow global warming. Many proponents of sustainable energy anticipate that electric generation from renewable sources would thrive in a deregulated market, driven by consumer demand for “green” energy and the end of incentives to build large central power plants under the cost-plus profits guaranteed by state utility commissions. This paper examines the flaws in this expectation. After reviewing the highly cyclical nature of U.S. energy policy making in recent decades, the study links the ineffectiveness of policy with the institutional setting. Under electric utility market restructuring, renewable energy generation (wind, biomass, solar, geothermal, and small-scale hydro) must overcome barriers such as price distortions, lack of storage capability, discriminatory transmission system access, and the end of linked utility rate hikes guaranteed to cover the additional expense of renewable generation. In the absence of strong federal leadership, the state commitment to renewable energy has been uneven under utility restructuring. Moreover, nuclear power—the other leading alternative to fossil fuel use—is beset by serious problems. Only renewable energy options offer long-term hope for sustainability. Along these lines, green marketing, renewable portfolio standards, system benefit charges, carbon taxes, public power, “Community Choice,” and production credits—all based on recent U.S. and European experience—are critically examined and recommendations made for changing course. At present, during this highly fluid period of utility restructuring, and absent more forceful regulation and demand management, it is dubious whether U.S. electricity market reform can encourage sufficient conversion to renewable energy to stem a rising tide of greenhouse gas emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the demand determinants of green power in the U.S. residential sector. The data employed were collected by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and consist of a cross-section of seven utilities observed over 13 years. A series of tests are performed that resulted in estimating a demand equation using the one-way cross-section random effects model. As expected, we find that demand is highly price inelastic. More interestingly though, is that elasticity with respect to number of customers is 0.52 leading to the conclusion that new subscribers tend to purchase less green power on average than the existing customers. Another compelling finding is that obtaining accreditation will have a 28.5% positive impact on consumption. Knowing that gaining green accreditation is important to the success of programs, utilities may want to seek certification and highlight it in their advertising campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, distributed renewable energy-generation technologies, such as wind and solar, have developed rapidly. Nevertheless, the utilization of ultra-low-head (ULH) water energy (i.e., situations where the hydraulic head is less than 3 m or the water flow is more than 0.5 m/s with zero head) has received little attention. We believe that, through technological innovations and cost reductions, ULH hydropower has the potential to become an attractive, renewable, and sustainable resource. This paper investigates potential sites for ULH energy resources, the selection of relevant turbines and generators, simplification of civil works, and project costs. This review introduces the current achievements on ULH hydroelectric technology to stimulate discussions and participation of stakeholders to develop related technologies for further expanding its utilization as an important form of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States has experienced heightened interest in clean energy sources, with many states implementing renewable technologies for energy generation. These efforts are critical for moving states and the nation toward decarbonization and decreased emissions within the transportation and power industries. A challenge with renewable sources (particularly solar and wind) is the inherent variability of energy generation due to climate and geographic influences. Consequently, there is increased interest in addressing energy storage technologies to better capitalize on excess power from high‐production periods for use in times of low generation. Energy storage comes in many different forms with varying duration. Several forms of energy storage are explored in this report to demonstrate the variety of technology options. Following research of the current state of energy storage policy, this work proposes three areas of potential policy improvements for industry: (1) implementation of a policy framework for states to produce ambitious energy storage procurement metrics; (2) amending of the federal investment tax credit for energy storage technologies to be duration‐based; and (3) incentivization of sustainable battery practices. It is imperative for state legislatures to create informed energy storage goals alongside current renewable energy metrics. Amending the modern federal investment tax credit system to include duration‐based incentivization will encourage the deployment of long‐duration technologies to combat variation in electricity generation over the course of seasons. Finally, for the continued deployment of batteries, sustainable practices must be implemented to mitigate material and environmental challenges posed by them, including recycling practices and alternative chemistry utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between renewable energy production and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) using U.S. state-level data for 2010. After controlling for other sources of emissions, U.S. states that produce a larger share of renewable energy are found to have lower GHG emissions. It is estimated that a 10% increase in the share of renewable energy could decrease CH 4 emissions by about 0.26%. Since the use of renewable energy sources does not release GHG emissions, this effect can be interpreted as stabilizing if renewable energy is added to coal use or as corrective if it replaces coal. After accounting for the role of coal as a baseload power source, an increase in the share of renewable energy is estimated to mitigate N 2 O emissions at the U.S. state level only if states individually decrease their share of coal use to levels below 41.47%. These findings have significant policy implications for the provision of guidance to policymakers in identifying optimal energy mixes and in pursuing realistic goals to enhance renewable energy penetration and to contribute to the current efforts of tackling climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following four years of relative stability at around $106 per barrel (bbl), oil prices have declined sharply since June 2014 and are expected to remain low for a considerable period of time. There are multiple factors which are being considered behind the plunge in the price of oil since June 2014. Most observers have conjectured that domestic oil boom in the United States and Iraq is the major cause for the falling oil prices. Some have suggested that a major shock to oil price expectations occurred after the November 2014 meeting of OPEC, when they did not cut production despite the steady increase in non-OPEC oil production. In this paper, first we analyzed the effect of various factors on the oil prices and then we studied impacts of the falling oil prices on non-hydro renewable energy. We compare the recent decline in oil prices with previous episodes up to 1996. We show that the demand and supply formula cannot be implemented to the current oil plunge. The study shows that so far the recent plunge in oil prices has produced no major impact on renewable energy sector. We found that renewable energies, such as solar and wind, are increasingly becoming cost competitive with fossil fuel energy. However the oil price crash could hurt the short-term outlook for certain specific clean energy technologies such as bio-fuel and electric vehicles that do compete with oil-based transportation. While long term low oil prices may threaten renewable energies, climate policies have the potential to act as a counterweight, encouraging long-term, low carbon, investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass is low-carbon energy and has tremendous potential as an alternative to fossil fuels. However, the significant role of biomass in future low-carbon energy portfolio depends heavily on its consumption. The paper presents a first attempt to examine the spatial-temporal patterns of biomass consumption in the United States (US), using a novel method-spatial Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) model, in order to strengthen the link between energy planning and spatial planning. In order to obtain the robust parameters of spatial SUR models and estimate the parameters efficiently, an iterative maximum likelihood method, which takes full advantage of the stationary characteristic of maximum likelihood estimation, has been developed. The robust parameters of models can help draw a proper inference for biomass consumption. Then the spatial-temporal patterns of biomass consumption in the US at the state level are investigated using the spatial SUR models with the estimation method developed and data covering the period of 2000–2012. Results show that there are spatial dependences among biomass consumption. The presence of spatial dependence in biomass consumption has informative implications for making sustainable biomass polices. It suggests new efforts to adding a cross-state dimension to state-level energy policy and coordinating some elements of energy policy across states are still needed. In addition, results consistent with classic economic theory further proves the correctness of applying the spatial SUR models to investigate the spatial-temporal patterns of biomass consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation explores whether sustainable finance and renewable energy could facilitate U.S. carbon neutrality. We perform the time-varying parameter-stochastic volatility-vector auto-regression (TVP-SV-VAR) model to obtain the changing relations among U.S. sustainable finance (SF), renewable energy (RE) and carbon dioxide emission (CO2). The empirical outcomes reveal a short-term negative effect from RE to CO2, indicating that renewable energy consumption could promote U.S. carbon neutrality. This effect is asymmetrical, and it could be observed that RE increase has a greater effect on CO2 than RE reduction. Also, the development of sustainable finance could facilitate U.S. carbon neutrality, and the direct impact is longer and more significant than RE, but the indirect effect of SF on CO2 by influencing RE is hysteretic. Besides, the asymmetric effect reveals that the negative direct impact of SF increase on CO2 is smaller than SF reduction, and the latter's indirect effect is more rapid than the former. Against the backdrop of global warming and frequent extreme weather, the above conclusions have meaningful practical applications for the U.S. to achieve carbon neutrality targets through developing sustainable finance and renewable energy. [Display omitted] • This paper explores the effects of SF and RE on U.S. carbon neutrality. • The facilitation of SF on U.S. carbon neutrality is more influential than that of RE. • There is a hysteretic indirect effect of SF on CO2 by influencing RE. • The negative effect of RE reduction on CO2 is smaller than that of RE increase. • The direct and indirect effects of SF on CO2 are asymmetric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study comprehensively examines the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on energy consumption in the United States. The purpose of the study is to quantify the effects of lockdowns and pandemic disruptions on energy consumption trends in order to inform policymakers and utilities on how to prepare for such events in the future. The study focuses on 2020 data collected by the Federal government. The effects are quantified using descriptive statistics. State-wise and sector-wise data have been presented using plots and heat maps. Related metrics like COVID case data, GDP, emissions, and expenditures were also presented. The total energy consumption fell by 7.5% in 2020. Besides Alaska, every state saw a decrease in energy, with some as high as 26%. The residential sector had the most states that saw an increase in energy, stemming from lockdowns and working from home. Similarly, petroleum consumption saw a decrease of 11.4% as a result of a decrease in travel. Biomass-related renewable energy generation fell by 23% due to decreased demand, while all other sources increased by 7.3%. Carbon dioxide emissions fell by 10.4%, methane by 2.8%, and nitric oxide by 6.7%. The overall per capita energy expenditure for the country dropped by 18.5%. There was a stronger correlation between GDP and energy consumption than between GDP and COVID case counts. The pandemic did not affect each state or sector evenly. The statistics and correlations presented here can be used in the ongoing effort to study the global impact of the pandemic and prepare for future challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]