...Louie King Suggest the Possible Environmental Consequences of the Changes in Electricity consumption Shown. (10) Due to many different factors, our consumption of electricity as a planet is going to fluctuate in the future. Using figure 1 I will explain some of the reasons as to why this is. For starters the graph shows tripled growth in the worlds electricity use by 2050 which will obviously have some effects on the environment, we will need this energy to cater for the populations exponential growth and this in itself will have monumental effects on the environment as more resources and space is used by the human population meaning animals and ecosystems will suffer. The graph shows an increase in renewable energies such as wind and solar which will be used more and more as fossil fuel reserves (gas, oil and coal) deplete further. Wind farms are not minor projects and require a lot of machinery for minimal power, an example of this is the north Kent wind farm which only generates enough power for 200000 homes despite it costing £9 billion to build. The sheer number of wind farms would affect ecosystems particularly out to sea and the same can be said for solar panels as areas of forest may have to be cleared to make room for them. We would see the vast majority of these solar plants in Africa which would obviously drastically alter the landscape. The fact that fossil fuels like oil and gas are levelling off could be considered a good thing for the environment because...
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...Policy 31 (2003) 721–734 Electricity and externalities in South Africa Randall Spalding-Fechera,*, David Khorommbi Matibeb b a Energy and Development Research Centre, University of Cape Town, Private Bag, Rondebosch 7700, South Africa Gauteng Department of Agricultural Conservation and Environment, PO Box 8769, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa Abstract As the electricity supply sector in developing countries undergoes increasingly rapid restructuring, and technology and fuel choices widen, understanding the environmental implications of investment choices becomes ever more important. The objective of this paper is to expand previous analysis of the external costs of electric power generation in South Africa. We present a quantitative analysis of air pollution impacts on human health, damages from greenhouse gas emissions, and the avoided health costs from electrification, as well as discussing other impacts qualitatively. The central estimate of total external costs is R7.3 billion, or 4.4 cents per unit of coal-fired power generated. Relative to current electricity prices, the external costs are approximately 40 and 20 per cent of industrial and residential tariffs, respectively. We then discuss policy options for addressing these costs, including taxation, tradable permit systems, and integrated resource planning, as well as expanded regional energy trade and the possibility of accessing climate change-related funding for cleaner electricity production. r 2002 Elsevier...
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...Public Disclosure Authorized 62696 Public Disclosure Authorized CITIES AND CLIMATE CHANGE Responding to an Urgent Agenda Daniel Hoornweg, Mila Freire, Marcus J. Lee, Perinaz Bhada-Tata, and Belinda Yuen, editors blic Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized CITIES AND CLIMATE CHANGE The Urban Development Series discusses the challenge of urbanization and what it will mean for developing countries in the decades ahead. The series delves substantively into the core issues framed by the World Bank’s 2009 Urban Strategy, Systems of Cities: Harnessing Urbanization for Growth and Poverty Alleviation. Across the five domains of the Urban Strategy, the series provides a focal point for publications that seek to foster a better understanding of the core elements of the city system, pro-poor policies, city economies, urban land and housing markets, urban environments, and other issues germane to the agenda of sustainable urban development. Cities and Climate Change: Responding to an Urgent Agenda is the first title in the Urban Development Series. CITIES AND CLIMATE CHANGE Responding to an Urgent Agenda Daniel Hoornweg, Mila Freire, Marcus J. Lee, Perinaz Bhada-Tata, and Belinda Yuen, editors Washington, D.C. © 2011 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org All rights reserved 1 2 3 4 14 13 12 11 This volume is a product...
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...UK Corresponding Author: Rachel A. Howell, Centre for the study of Environmental Change and Sustainability, School of Geosciences, The University of Edinburgh, Drummond Street, Edinburgh EH8 9XP, UK. Email: r.a.howell@sms.ed.ac.uk Investigating the LongTerm Impacts of Climate Change Communications on Individuals’ Attitudes and Behavior Rachel A. Howell1 Abstract To assess the effectiveness of climate change communications, it is important to examine their long-term impacts on individuals’ attitudes and behavior. This article offers an example study and a discussion of the challenges of conducting long-term investigations of behavioral change related to climate change communications (a vital and underresearched area). The research reported is a longitudinal panel study of the impacts on UK viewers of the climate change movie The Age of Stupid. The heightened levels of concern, motivation to act, and sense of agency about action that were initially generated by the movie did not measurably persist over the long term. The results also show that behavioral intentions do not necessarily translate into action. Data analysis raised issues concerning the reliability of participants’ causal attributions of their behavior. This and other methodological challenges are discussed, and some ways of avoiding or lessening problems are suggested. Keywords climate change communications, proenvironmental behavior, behavioral change, behavioral intentions, public attitudes Article Downloaded from eab...
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...UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME DECOUPLING NATURAL RESOURCE USE AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS FROM ECONOMIC GROWTH Acknowledgements Editor: International Resource Panel Working Group on Decoupling Lead authors: Marina Fischer-Kowalski, Institute of Social Ecology Vienna, Alpen-Adria University, Austria, with the support of the Lebensministerium, Austria and Mark Swilling, Sustainability Institute, School of Public Leadership, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa Contributing authors: Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker (Chairperson of the Decoupling Working Group), Yong Ren, Yuichi Moriguchi, Wendy Crane, Fridolin Krausmann, Nina Eisenmenger, Stefan Giljum, Peter Hennicke, Rene Kemp, Paty Romero Lankao, Anna Bella Siriban Manalang, Sebastian Sewerin Jeff McNeely provided editorial support for the full report and summary brochure. The report went through several rounds of peer-review coordinated in an efficient and constructive way by Jeff McNeely together with the International Resource Panel Secretariat. Valuable comments were received from several anonymous reviewers in this process. The preparation of this report also benefited from discussions with many colleagues at various meetings. Special thanks go to Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker and Ashok Khosla as Co-Chairs of the International Resource Panel, the members of the International Resource Panel and its Steering Committee for their dedication and commitment. Janet...
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...the years. Some crops are modified to prevent insects from eating them, other foods are altered bio-mechanically to provide additional resources or to grow larger. Even so far as farm animals are given treatments that dramatically increase their body size, yielding more meat. To preface the argument food or against genetically modified foods: there is simply no easy solution. The overall scenario of genetically modified foods has many different parameters. These parameters include ethical, religious, legal and environmental ramifications. It would be equally as irrational to say that genetically modified foods were more or less dangerous than they were beneficial. The perspective to the scenario should be taken on both micro and macro levels, and to perceive their effects in the most open-minded scenarios as possible. Much of the rhetoric against genetically modified foods focuses on a fraction of what they entail; while, perhaps, leaving out economic models that suggest fewer alternatives. A great example that sets the playing field for genetically modified foods is the nutrition shortage in Southeast Asia. In this region, rice is the...
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...years. Some crops are modified to prevent insects from eating them, other foods are altered bio-mechanically to provide additional resources or to grow larger. Even so far as farm animals are given treatments that dramatically increase their body size, yielding more meat. To preface the argument food or against genetically modified foods: there is simply no easy solution. The overall scenario of genetically modified foods has many different parameters. These parameters include ethical, religious, legal and environmental ramifications. It would be equally as irrational to say that genetically modified foods were more or less dangerous than they were beneficial. The perspective to the scenario should be taken on both micro and macro levels, and to perceive their effects in the most open-minded scenarios as possible. Much of the rhetoric against genetically modified foods focuses on a fraction of what they entail; while, perhaps, leaving out economic models that suggest fewer alternatives. A great example that sets the playing field for genetically modified foods is the nutrition shortage in Southeast Asia. In this region, rice is the greatest staple food....
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...Corporate Carbon Strategies Threats and opportunities arising from the new energy imperative Reference Code: BI00036-019 Publication Date: March 2011 1 About the authors Professor Merlin Stone Merlin is Head of Research at The Customer Framework. He is author or co-author of many articles and thirty books and also on the editorial advisory boards of several academic journals. He has a first class honors degree and doctorate in economics from Sussex University, UK. In parallel to his business career, he has also pursued a full academic career, holding senior posts at various universities. He is now a visiting professor at De Montfort, Oxford Brookes and Portsmouth Universities, teaches economics for the Open University and marketing for Exeter University. Jane Fae Ozimek The author is a writer and researcher in the areas of IT, Business and the Law. Jane is currently editor of the Journal of Database Marketing and has previously published works on the use of statistics in business and Marketing Resource Management. Recent research papers include publications on the misuse of security protocols by major corporations, and a re-evaluation of the Loyalty Ladder concept in marketing theory. Jane was also co-author of the recently published Carbon Trading and the Effect of the Copenhagen Agreement (published by Business Insights, 2010). 2 Disclaimer Copyright © 2011 Business Insights Ltd This report is published by Business Insights (the Publisher). This report...
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...attempts to imitate nature’s structural design that produces without pollution. Additionally, David R. Keller and E. Charles Brummer, professors and directors of studies, have developed postmechanistic agricultural ideas to humane and environmentally conscious food production. To offer a greater philosophical view, Aldo Leopold’s, “The Land Ethic” reorients ethics to view human beings as members of a much larger biotic community. These speakers all act on different interrelated topics to preserve nature and provide for human interest and longevity. The industrial revolution was a turning point in history that paved the way for industrial, technological, and cultural advancements. These improvements came at the loss of public health and environmental wellness, and only after addressing these issues has society begun...
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...The economic benefits of environmental policy A project under the Framework contract for economic analysis ENV.G.1/FRA/2006/0073 - 2nd FINAL REPORT November 2009 Matt Raymenta, Elke Pirgmaierb, Griet De Ceusterc, Friedrich Hinterbergerb, Onno Kuikd, Henry Leveson Gowera, Christine Polzinb, Adarsh Varmaa a b c d GHK Sustainable Europe Research Institute (SERI) Transport & Mobility Leuven VU University Amsterdam, Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) Institute for Environmental Studies Vrije Universiteit De Boelelaan 1087 1081 HV AMSTERDAM The Netherlands Tel. ++31-20-5989 555 Fax. ++31-20-5989 553 E-mail: info@ivm.falw.vu.nl Internet: http://www.vu.nl/ivm vrije Universiteit amsterdam Contents Executive Summary 1. 2. 3. 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 4. 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 5. 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 6. 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 7. 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 8. 8.1 Introduction Environmental Policy and the Economy Environmental Policies and Productivity Description and background Policy instruments Review of evidence from the wider literature Evidence from examples and case studies Scale of economic benefits to date and assessment of the further potential Beneficiaries and timescale Environmental Policies and Innovation Description and background Policy instruments Review of evidence Examples and case studies Scale of economic benefits Beneficiaries and timescale Environmental Policies and Employment Description and background Policy instruments Review of evidence from...
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...Assessment 1 Develop workplace sustainability Questions What are the sustainability issues? Unsustainable activities have led to changes in our environment, or have been identified as having the potential to lead to future changes. The types of changes that are occurring or are predicted to occur form the key issues for sustainability. The following Table 1 provides a summary of the key issues. They are related to changes to the physical and cultural (being the way we live) environments, which in turn relate to the economic environment. What does sustainability mean? Every day we hear the term ‘sustainable’ or ‘sustainability’ being used to describe a large number of issues and news items. There is the ‘sustainable economy’, ‘sustainable agriculture’, ‘economically sustainable’, ‘the need to be sustainable’, ‘sustainable work practices’ and ‘sustainable water supply’ to name a few. The Brundtland Report, Our Common Future, is seen by many as one of the first global reports to address sustainable development. This report defined sustainable development as: “…development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Brundtland (1987) National strategy for ecologically sustainable development Sustainable Development is defined by the Australian Government’s National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development as: “…using, conserving and enhancing the community’s resources...
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...to improve the flexibility of the energy system in order to increase the share of renewable energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The object of analysis is waste which is not reused or recycled, but can be used for energy production. Different Waste-to-Energy technologies are analyzed through energy system analysis of the current Danish energy system with 13-14% renewable energy, as well as possible future Danish energy systems with 43% (2025) and 100% renewable energy (2050), respectively. The technologies include combustion, thermal gasification, anaerobic digestion, fermentation, and transesterification technologies producing electricity, heat, or transport fuel. In the USA, according to the US energy recovery council, there are 87 WTE plants producing 2,700 megawatts that results into 17 million of kwh per year which is enough to meet the needs for power for 2 million households. In the EU incineration is more popular. According to the confederation of European Waste to energy plants (CEWEP) the plants in Europe can supply annually about 13 million inhabitants with electricity and 12 million inhabitants with heat. Waste to energy is produced mainly by biological material and thus the energy produced is mainly biomass energy along with all its pros and cons. In addition significant steps have been taken in recent years to make sure that the portion of non biological material incinerated is harmless to the environment. Therefore, waste to energy incineration is a great...
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...Environmental challenges as business opportunity I. INTRODUCTION “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed.” - Mahatma Gandhi The above quote rightly points out the role of environment for the mankind and the responsibility we need to shoulder for its sustenance. We've come a long way in recognizing that and now almost every business has a statute of doing something good for the environment as part of their CSR initiative. But companies who think of the environment as a social responsibility and not as an imperative are not going in the right direction. The global climate changes and the gradual scarcity of resources have come to light as major disruptions in the business environment. These challenges have opened up new opportunities for companies to sell solutions to these problems. Businesses prosper with the motive of growing their profits at an infinite rate. But environment considerations should not be left while garnering those profits. The role of Environmental ethics come into play here which focuses on the MNCs' ethics in running their businesses as well as keeping the environment untouched to the extent possible. Environmental Ethics The field of Environmental Ethics has grown since the early 1970s. The scholars who have categorized the natural environment include Alan Marshall and Michael Smith. Marshall has used the following terms to describe these categories: Libertarian extension, which commits itself to extend equal rights...
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...twice in the recent period. The first was when agricultural consumption was de-metered and extensive subsidies were offered; the second when Independent Power Producer contracts with major fiscal implications were signed by the State Electricity Boards. A third set of circumstances, with the potential for equally powerful forms of institutional lock-in, appears to be in the making with the reproduction of the Orissa model on the national scale. This paper provides an analysis of the social and political context in which power sector reforms have taken place in India. While a state-led power sector has been responsible for substantial failures, is the design of the reformed sector well aimed at balancing efficiency and profit-making on the one hand and the public interest on the other? The discussion of the forces and actors that have shaped the reform processes is intended to contribute to an understanding of how the public interest can best be served in the ongoing effort to reshape the power sector. NAVROZ K DUBASH, SUDHIR CHELLA RAJAN I Introduction he electric power sector in India is in a state of upheaval. Over the decade of the 1990s, the long-held belief in public ownership and operation of this critical sector has been eroded. In its place has emerged a growing vision of the sector organised around participation by the private sector, competition and independent regulation. The significance of these changes for economic, distributive and political outcomes is potentially...
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...Design Green Maturity Model for Virtualization Application Patterns for Green IT Architecture Journal Profile: Udi Dahan Profiling Energy Usage for Efficient Consumption Project Genome: Wireless Sensor Network for Data Center Cooling Green IT in Practice: SQL Server Consolidation in Microsoft IT Contents Foreword by Diego Dagum 1 18 Environmentally Sustainable Infrastructure Design by Lewis Curtis A comprehensive understanding of environmental sustainability needs for IT infrastructure system design. 2 Green Maturity Model for Virtualization by Kevin Francis and Peter Richardson The authors present a study on the maturity of virtualization practices and offer a sustainability roadmap for organizations planning a green agenda. 9 Application Patterns for Green IT by Dan Rogers and Ulrich Homann A complete analysis on power-efficient applications design, considering tools that help the architect achieve scalability without deriving in energy waste. 16 Architecture Journal Profile: Udi Dahan For this issue’s interview, we catch up with Udi Dahan, noted expert on SOA and .NET development, and four-time Microsoft MVP. 22 Profiling Energy Usage for Efficient Consumption by Rajesh Chheda, Dan Shookowsky, Steve Stefanovich, and Joe Toscano This article suggests that tracking energy consumption at every level will become the factor of success for green architecture practitioners. 24 Project Genome: Wireless Sensor Network for Data Center Cooling ...
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