For more than half of a century, America’s regional power grids provided a platform for the nation’s economy to achieve vast productivity gains.  The advent of advanced electronics has galvanized a fundamental change in the way America uses power, which the nation’s grid has struggled –mostly unsuccessfully – to provide.   The cleavage between...
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Over the second half of the 20th century, the advent of digital technologies and telecommunications dramatically increased interdependencies among U.S. critical infrastructures.  Disruptions in a single infrastructure can generate disturbances within other infrastructures and over long distances, and the pattern of interconnections can extend or amplify the effects of a disruption. The energy infrastructure...
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Map of U.S. High Speed Interstate Rail Service and Funding Levels from Federal Stimulus
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Briefing by Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern February 16, 2010 MR. TONER: Good afternoon. We’re very pleased to have Special Envoy Todd Stern here today to give us the lay of the land on international climate negotiations post-Copenhagen. As you know, in late January, the U.S. announced that it submitted its pledge to limit...
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America’s New Energy R&D Strategy Statement by Dr. Robert Marlay U.S. Department of Energy With the recent administration change and economic downturn, the US priorities in energy, environment, science, and the economy have been altered or strengthened. The current baseline goal is to reduce GHG emissions by 80 percent by 2050. Within ten years, the US plans...
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The energy revolution needed to shift the world’s energy economy from fossil fuels to clean energy and reverse the road to run called climate change is not proceeding as planned.  Too little is happening and it is happening too slowly. One reason: lack of access to finance.
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If Congress passes climate and energy legislation that strengthens energy efficiency and renewable energy standards, Americans may see electric and natural gas costs fall by $113 billion by 2030.  In addition, emitters would pay 4 percent less in compliance costs to meet potential requirements under a cap-and-trade scheme, according to a new...
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy announced the launch of the State Energy Efficiency Action Network last week, which aims to accelerate deployment of energy efficiency policies and programs at the state level.
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The domestic wind-power industry in the United States shattered all previous records by adding nearly 10,000 megawatts of generating capacity last year, according to a recent report by the American Wind Energy Association. Wind power is now competing closely with natural gas as the leading source of new electricity generation for the country. Collectively, wind...
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