Category: Policy

Why Energy Efficiency Needs to Be Redefined with Higher Renewables Penetration

Why Energy Efficiency Needs to Be Redefined with Higher Renewables Penetration

08/13/19

“Why do we need to rethink energy efficiency in the presence of a high renewables grid?”

Energy efficiency is often touted as one of the most effective ways of lowering carbon output. However, if the energy provided comes from a low carbon source, then it would not make much sense to focus on reducing energy usage. Instead, energy efficiency programs must target cutting energy where supplies are pollutive, such as natural gas for stoves. This is Why Energy Efficiency Needs to Be Redefined with Higher Renewables Penetration.

How Climate Change Will Lead to Water Crises

How Climate Change Will Lead to Water Crises

08/10/19

“How will there be more water crises because of Climate Change?”

With the advent of the changing climate, almost every environmental variable will be affected. In particular, areas which have dry climates will become dryer. This means less water will be produced, leading to shortages. Such shortages will cause haphazard issues for infrastructure systems designed for greater supplies of water, resulting in difficult tensions. An illustration of this can be found in Cape Town, South Africa, where a dry spell caused the municipality to enact draconian water supply restrictions. This is How Climate Change Will Lead to Water Crises.

Why We Can Learn From Cape Town in Solving Water Crises

Why We Can Learn From Cape Town in Solving Water Crises

08/09/19

“How did the city of Cape Town get itself out of a water crisis and how can other cities learn from it?”

At the beginning of 2018, the city of Cape Town was facing a devastating problem. Given the current supply of water and usage rates, the city was projected to run out of water within the year. Realizing the direness of the scenario, the city government issued a dire warning. If the water in the damns became too low, the municipality would shut off the taps on a day labeled “day zero”. To ensure citizens would cooperate, the city placed a 50 liter/day limit to water usage (for reference, the average daily per capita use in California was 321 liters), and anyone who went over would be heavily fined or even have their water shut down. Residents took heed, and began rationing water and using it as efficiently as possible. As a result, Cape Town was able to lower its water usage, achieve sustainability and avoid day zero. As droughts become a larger problem in the future with climate change, cities should learn from Cape Town in how to grapple with these problems.

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Solar Financing

Solar Financing

08/07/19

“How are solar projects financed?”

The solar industry is one of the fastest growing market forces in the world. However, like all infrastructure related expenditures, it needs financing to back it up. Such Solar Financing can come in numerous forms, whether it be investments from venture capital firms or debt from banking institutions.

Wheeling

Wheeling

07/22/19

“How can we transmit electricity outside of grid boundaries?”

Electricity is usually thought of as being generated and distributed inside the grid boundaries. However, this is not always the case. When this does happen, electricity is said to be wheeled. There are two types of wheeling, one where generation is inside the grid boundary while the load is not (wheel-out) and one where both are outside (wheel-through).

Why Building Codes Should Include Resilience and Adaptation Criteria

Why Building Codes Should Include Resilience and Adaptation Criteria

07/20/19

“Why should there be more focus on resilience and adaptation in building codes?”

The building sector in the industrialized world has become a very standardized process, with many codes stipulating what needs to be accomplished. However, with the advent of climate change and the accompanying increase in frequency of natural disasters, there needs to be more focus on ensuring that new buildings are ready for such phenomena. This can be accomplished by incorporating them into building codes, so developers will be certain to consider them. This is Why Building Codes Should Include Resilience and Adaptation Criteria.

Why You Should Stockpile Water in Case of a Power Outage

Why You Should Stockpile Water in Case of a Power Outage

07/18/19

“Why should you keep spare water in case of a blackout?”

Because of interdependencies, when the electricity goes out, it also takes out other infrastructure with it. When this outage is large scale, water supplies can also be affected. If residents do not have any backups, then they could be without water for days. This is Why You Should Stockpile Water in Case of a Power Outage.

Why Cross-Sector Communication Is Necessary for Interdependent Infrastructure Resilience

Why Cross-Sector Communication Is Necessary for Interdependent Infrastructure Resilience

07/17/19

“Why do critical infrastructure professionals from different sectors need to talk to each other more?”

The closer one looks at infrastructure failures, the more one realizes how interdependent they all are. When a disaster strikes one, it strikes the others as well. If resilience planning is done for one infrastructure sector without taking others into account, true security can never be achieved. To do this, cross-sector communication must be established, whether it be how electricity failures can cause water treatment to ground to a halt or how ruptures in gas supply could induce transportation bottlenecks. This is Why Cross-Sector Communication Is Necessary for Interdependent Infrastructure Resilience.

Why We Need the Viewpoints of All Communities in Combating Climate Change

Why We Need the Viewpoints of All Communities in Combating Climate Change

07/16/19

“Why do we need everyone’s viewpoint when it comes to combating climate change?”

Climate change is one of the largest threats threatening humanity. And since everyone will be affected, we need to consider the viewpoints of all, especially of those who are exploited the most. This is Why We Need the Viewpoints of All Communities in Combating Climate Change.