Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
october 2016

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energy

World Energy Council releases 2016 World Energy Resources Report

October 12, 2016

The World Energy Council, a United Nations-accredited global energy consortium, released its 2016 World Energy Resources Report on October 12. Since its inception in 2010, the report has shown a global trend toward a more diversified global energy portfolio. The report provides a comparative analysis of global primary energy sources over the last fifteen years.

According to the report, wind and solar energy have increased their share of the global energy portfolio by 0.81 percent and 0.39 percent, respectively; and although oil is still recognized as the primary energy source, its contribution to the global energy portfolio has declined 0.55 percent since 2010.

The report also identifies challenges for future growth of the renewable energy sector. For example, the unstable supply of rare earth elements, which are key components in clean energy technology such as solar panels and electric cars, is listed as a potential limiting factor to growth.

The World Energy Resources report was released just after the official ratification of the international Paris Climate Agreement. The report states that progress toward a more renewable-dependent global energy portfolio is too slow to meet emissions targets within the Paris Agreement, and that public acceptance of renewable energy sources remains a challenge.

Sources: United Nations, World Energy Council

Five federal agencies take action to improve water and energy efficiency

October 4, 2016

Five federal agencies are working to increase consumers’ awareness of the benefits of switching to water- and energy-efficient fixtures and building codes.

The U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Veterans Affairs, and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have released statements encouraging homeowners to install WaterSense-certified fixtures in their homes and providing relevant consumer information about their benefits. The EPA’s WaterSense program labels products that have a “potential for significant water savings on a national level” and has saved the U.S. upwards of 1.5 trillion gallons of water since its introduction in 2006. HUD has also announced that they will begin collecting data on 2.2 million multi-family homes to determine how much energy and water they use. These data will help inform consumers, create benchmarks for home efficiency, and improve future HUD programs.

The Department of Energy also recently commissioned an analysis from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to assess the benefits of keeping up to date on the latest building energy codes. The analysis is yet to be released, but if consistently employed, the White House estimates that the codes could decrease national carbon emissions by more than 800 million metric tons over the next 25 years.

The White House will also do its part to increase its water- and energy-efficiency: it plans to seek $2 billion in energy performance contracts within the next three years and to save 2 billion gallons of water.

Sources: Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, Whitehouse.gov