China Energy Newsletter- April

China Energy Monthly- April 2010

CLIMATE CHANGE

The West’s Global Warming Hoax and China’s Low-carbon Economy (4-21-2010)

Many radical Chinese nationalists claim that global warming is merely a conspiracy that the western world is using to depress the economic development in China. Climate change skepticism in the US has also experienced renewed support in recent months, but the obvious effects of profligate energy use are increasingly more visible in China than in the US. For instance, the number of full-cover smog days has significantly increased in the past 20 years. This has led some voices in the Chinese media community to condemn the skeptics regarding change—regardless of whether climate change is real, realizing a low-carbon economy will ultimately benefit all of China. Short-term economic disadvantages are a real concern, but China must embrace a new globalization that recognizes the security a low carbon economy would provide.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2010-04/21/content_9755908.htm

Climate Change threatens to Steal Spring (4-23-2010)

Spring in Beijing seems to have delayed its arrival—and climate change is at the heart of the problem. Cold fronts and snowstorms have pounded the northern regions, and low temperatures are beginning to impede crop growth. Additionally, the number of sand storms and other natural disasters is at the highest level in 50 years. These signs of global climate weirding are just another indicator that sustainable development and cleaner fuels are needed not only in China, but also across the globe.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2010-04/23/content_9765358.htm

Wind Energy in Pop Culture: Last Night's "The Simpsons"

The above 5-minute clip showcases the April 25, 2010 episode of "The Simpsons," in which Homer purchases a wind turbine for his family's backyard, in order to reduce the family's electricity costs. The clip takes jabs at wasteful electricity usage, comments on popular reluctance to move towards energy efficiency, mocks solar power, derides renewable energy's intermittence, and so much more. Enjoy.

Wind Farm Leapfrog: Has Rhode Island Pulled Ahead of Massachusetts in the Race to Build the First Offshore Wind Farm?

Several of the Institute for Energy and the Environment's Research Associates are also members of the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law (VJEL). We analyze recent events and write assessments on frontier issues of environmental law. In my most recent piece, I take a look at the recent NY Times article that suggested Rhode Island may have surpassed Massachusetts as the leader in the race to develop the first offshore wind farm in the U.S. I disagree with the article's implication, but I do assert than the Rhode Island siting regime may be the new model and to that extent, Rhode Island has caught up to and passed Massachusetts. The impetus to analyze this issue originated last fall, when Danielle Changala and I represented the Institute at the New England Regional Ocean Law and Policy Workshop in Rhode Island.

Here is an excerpt:

Since mid-2001, the U.S. energy community has expected that the first American offshore wind farm would be located just off of Massachusetts, in the waters of Cape Cod. However, due to astonishing legal and regulatory delays, Massachusetts still does not have an offshore wind facility. Meanwhile, as reported in the New York Times ("Massachusetts and Rhode Island Compete Over Wind Farm") in April 2010, Rhode Island has developed its own offshore wind farm siting regime, which may prove superior to Massachusetts' permitting and siting regime. Unlike in Massachusetts, where a private developer initiated the permitting process, Rhode Island has decided that it will make the siting and planning decision, then choose a private developer to execute the state's vision. Currently, Massachusetts and Rhode Island appear to be at the head of the pack in offshore wind farm siting.

Continue reading at VJEL.org...

Energy Efficiency and Emission Reduction: The Chinese Power Industry Dealing with Climate Change

By Wang LiFen, Student at Vermont Law School 2008-2009


I. Introduction

As a developing country with 1.3 billion citizens, China is trying to develop its economy and improve people’s living standard at the same time. It is quite understandable that the rapid development of the economy always accompanies heavy pressure on the environment and resources in a developing country. With the environmental degradation, the power industry bears the major share of the blame. The Chinese Government is now dedicating itself to addressing the environmental issues with great efforts towards energy efficiency and low-carbon economy development. Environmental protection and economic development have become a dilemma for the Government and industry to face.

For more than 30 years, China has witnessed a rapid development in social economy with double-digit growth rates in each year. In the year 2008, China's economy expanded 9 percent and its gross domestic product amounted to 30.07 trillion yuan (about $4.43 trillion dollars). With the momentum for rapid growth, nationwide total electricity output hit 3433TWh and power consumption recorded 3427 TWh in 2008. The power industry is leading the trend in the economic rapid growth. 

In order to keep pace with its development, China has also paid a high price in its resources and environment despite achieving miraculous economic progress. Though China no longer suffers starvation or attacks, but it still suffers abuse for its potential title of the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases. International Energy Agency forecasts predict that China will experience the largest growth in carbon dioxide emissions between now and the year 2030 .

The power industry is one of the largest fossil-fuel consumers and pollutant emitters when gearing up the social economy. In China, the power supply is still lagging far behind the demand, and there are more power plants and supply equipment under progress. To maintain a sustainable development, the power industry needs restructuring in energy mix and technical innovation in pollutant control. Both the government and industry welcome new technologies, ideas and insights dealing with emission reduction and efficiency.

China gives top priority to meeting the challenge of climate change and development of a green economy. Thanks to the hard work on the part of the officials and workers across the power sector in recent years, China has recorded dramatic achievements in improving efficiency. Last year, per unit GDP energy consumption dropped 1.33%. The Chinese government in its 11th five-year plan has set targets to annually reduce the per unit GDP energy consumption by 4 percent and in total by 20 percent in five years. 

China has become a booming economic country with its rapid growth rate in GDP. Although it is not the greatest country in terms of per capita greenhouse gas emission, the government is very active and dedicated to controlling pollutant emissions and developing a green economy. The power industry is on the front lines to take action and meet targets. The paper presents an introduction to the power industry in China, and what the Chinese government and its industry have done and shall do in order to save energy, reduce pollution, and develop a low carbon economy as well as carry on its high-paced growth. 

DOWNLOAD THE ARTICLE

Smart Grid, Electric Co-ops, and el Conquistador

Good news for members of rural electric cooperatives! The CEO of your co-op will not be taking that junket to a resort in Puerto Rico in a few days in order to be wined and dined by purveyors of expensive utility doo-dads that would be paid for by their co-ops’ members.

A mysterious outfit called HaneLeeWells Expos LLC has postponed its so-called “Rural Smart Grid Summit” that was supposed to happen from April 26 to 29 at the El Conquistador Resort in Puerto Rico. According to the event’s web site, the idea was to persuade at least 80 executives from electric co-ops to enjoy a free visit to the resort and participate in “private Boardroom appointments” with vendors prepared to discuss “the latest technology breakthroughs” on the Smart Grid front.

Here’s the pitch to vendors: “As a leading, smart-grid-enabling vendor, you can see how productive and potentially profitable Rural Smart Grid Summit attendance can be. This is a first-ever opportunity to connect with a top-quality, by-invitation-only audience of North America's most exclusive Rural Electric Cooperative Executives. Summit guests —carefully qualified as the opinion leaders and hosted in VIP style — will be present to listen to your approach for a smarter grid, learn about your current and emerging technologies, and explore new strategies for business success.

One might well wonder who will be conquering whom at El Conquistador! IBM has signed up as a lead vendor-sponsor of the event, as has International Broadband Electronic Communications (IBEC) and the smart-meter vendor Landis & Gyr.

Happily, this week’s announcement that the El Conquistador junket has been postponed to October is sufficiently suffused with PR blarney to give one reason to hope that Co-op VIPs, or at least most of them, are not succumbing to the moral hazard that is as ubiquitous here as the sand traps of the El Conquistador golf course. (Here’s how the resort describes its golfing facility: “Stroll the daunting hills and bunkers tamed by cleverly planned lateral movements and broad openings. View the elevation changes of more than 200 feet - rare among typically flat Caribbean golf resorts. And take in the greens, dotted with palm trees, lush island flora, and fauna.” But we digress.)

According to a news release that was circulated via PRNewswire, the Rural Smart Grid Summit has been postponed “due to unprecedented interest and scheduling needs by industry insiders.” The news release quoted event organizer William Booth as proclaiming that "many of the invited eighty plus CEOs of the top electric coops from across the United States had schedule conflicts with the original April dates, yet wanted to interact in an intimate business setting with Smart Grid technology leaders like IBM, IBEC and Balance Energy.” Notice the way they threw in the names of the event sponsors.

All kidding aside, this event, its promotion, and its postponement, raise two serious issues.

The first should be of concern to people who take seriously the notion that the nation’s electricity grid needs to be dragged out of the early 20th Century and into the 21st. It was probably inevitable that the phrase “smart grid” would no longer mean just sensible efforts to make the bulk power system, and the distribution circuits attached to it, more flexible and interactive so that we can use electricity more efficiently, sustainably and reliably. If one needed evidence that the phrase “smart grid” has been at least partially co-opted by companies that seek profit by needlessly gold-plating the electricity grid at ratepayer expense, the Rural Smart Grid Summit is it. Smart gridders of goodwill should unambiguously distance themselves from efforts of this sort.

Secondly, the very existence of such a pitch to executives of Rural Electric Co-ops ought to be profoundly unsettling to anyone who truly embraces the idea that such organizations, owned and at least theoretically controlled by their customers, should be resolutely dedicated to acting in the best interests of those customer-members and no one else. One expects executives of investor-owned utilities to succumb to junket temptations, given that shareholders are historically forgiving of (or oblivious to) such faustian bargains. But executives of rural electric co-ops are like the kosher hot dog company in the famous TV advertisement featuring Uncle Sam looking heavenwards. The gist of the ad was that, while most hot dog companies have only Uncle Sam’s USDA standards to worry about, “we,” proclaimed the kosher hot dog company, “have to answer to a higher authority.”

If you belong to a rural electric cooperative, rely on such a co-op for electricity, and assume the co-op is acting in your best interests, maybe it is worth checking out whether your friendly neighborhood co-op exec is truly answering to the higher authority. Ask her if she has any plans to visit Puerto Rico in October.

U.S. Plan for Nuclear Unclear

The Obama administration is a clear supporter of nuclear power, viewing it as an important mix in our low carbon energy future. With Illinois home to 11 nuclear facilities (map), perhaps its no surprise that President Obama values nuclear power's future. Some have argued that the recent decision to allow more off-shore drilling is a bargaining piece for other energy and climate plans - including nuclear power. While this particular writer agrees that nuclear power has some endearing environmental attributes, the debate is still out.

IEE's own senior researchers, Peter Bradford and Mark Cooper, have conflicting views on the matter. You can find Cooper's article on IEE's web page, discussing the economic externalities of nuclear power as compared to other alternatives - concluding in part that the costs are too high to consider building nuclear now.

Even for those who believe the future of nuclear power is bright, it is clear that problems still persist. At least one company, Entergy, has recently experienced significant faults in their safety and environmental track records. If you follow the blog, you are familiar with the recent developments of the Vermont Yankee facility (see archived articles). Now, New York State has ruled that Entergy's cooling tower at Indian Point violates the Clean Water Act. (NYT) While Entergy in particular seems to have a poor track record, its worth noting that these plants are aging facilities.

Yet even if the new generation of plants are built to higher safety standards, the industry still faces the pesky problem of where to put nuclear waste. President Obama campaigned on ending Yucca Mountain, and the Energy Department is looking to withdraw its application to operate the Yucca repository. This caused 16 utilities to sue the Energy Department, seeking an end to waste disposal fees since there is no national disposal plan. (NYT) For now, many facilities are using dry cask storage on site.

This Friday, Dartmouth is hosting a "Great Issues in Energy" symposium, the topic of which is "The Nuclear Option." Speakers Dr. Alex Glaser, Dr. Joseph Romm and Dr. Ernest Moniz will present. I'll report back to see how they answer some of our pressing questions.

IEE is hiring (II)

Institute for Energy and the Environment

Smart Grid Project Manager

Vermont Law School seeks a Smart Grid Project Manager for its Institute for Energy and the Environment.

The Institute for Energy and the Environment (IEE) is the home of an advanced curriculum on energy and regulatory law at Vermont Law School. The IEE distributes scholarly, technical, and practical publications; provides forums and conferences for professional education and issue development; and serves as a center for graduate research on energy issues, with an environmental awareness. For more information, visit www.vermontlaw.edu/energy.

The position of Smart Grid Project Manager has been created to oversee the scope of the Institute’s new Smart Grid research made possible through funding from the Department of Energy. 

The primary responsibilities associated with this position include the following:

·         Administer program specific grants of $450,000 including creating and maintaining a financial reporting system in conjunction with the VLS Business Office as required by DOE

·         Oversee Institute research on Smart Grid efforts including supervising and coordinating the efforts of the Global Energy Fellow and a team of Research Assistants

·         Research US power grid shortcomings and through research, conferences, publications, etc. address energy and economic inefficiencies.  

·         Create detailed assessments of legal and regulatory structures on the national, regional and state levels.

·         Create a predictable and understandable set of legal and regulatory standards related to individual privacy, customer confidential data, and liability issues for investors, operators, and users

·         Represent Vermont Law School at Smart Grid policy conferences throughout the US and overseas.

·         Participate in the solicitation of additional funding to sustain the program.

The ideal candidate would have a demonstrated knowledge of the interfaces among technology deployment, electric power grid operations, and regulatory or legal standards, all combined with a record of professional productivity such as academic publications, major program administration within a government or academic setting, and/or demonstrated record of changing the world through advocacy.  Salary will be commensurate with experience and accomplishments. A J.D. or advanced technology degree is strongly preferred.

Vermont Law School, a private, independent institution located on the banks of the White River in central Vermont, is Vermont's only law school. It offers a traditional JD curriculum that emphasizes the public-serving role of lawyers, a Master of Studies in Environmental Law degree for non-lawyers, and an LLM in Environmental Law.  The law school also features innovative experiential programs and is home to the Environmental Law Center and the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic.

Application deadline:  April 19, 2010 or until filled. 

Start date by mutual agreement, but no later than August 15, 2010.

Please send cover letter (expression of interest), references and resume to:

Email:             jobs@vermontlaw.edu

Mail:               Diane Hayes, Director of Human Resources

Vermont Law School

PO Box 96

Chelsea Street

South Royalton, VT  05068

Fax:                 (802) 831-1212

Vermont Law School is an EEO employer.

IEE is hiring (I)

Institute for Energy and the Environment

Deputy Director

Vermont Law School seeks a Deputy Director for its Institute for Energy and the Environment.

The Institute for Energy and the Environment (IEE) is the home of an advanced curriculum on energy and regulatory law at Vermont Law School. The IEE distributes scholarly, technical, and practical publications; provides forums and conferences for professional education and issue development; and serves as a center for graduate research on energy issues, with an environmental awareness. For more information, visit www.vermontlaw.edu/energy.

The primary responsibilities associated with this position include the following:

• In coordination with the Associate Director, assist, and often represent, the Director in the administration, development, and operations of the Institute.
• Help guide and teach research team of senior lawyers/analysts, junior lawyers and research associates in roughly $1 million per year of commissioned research for multiple clients.
• Conduct commissioned and independent research personally.
• Represent Vermont Law School at policy conferences throughout the US and overseas.
• Teach one class most semesters (usually in administrative law, regulatory law, Clean Air Act, energy law or a related field).
• Substantive work will be on the intersection between energy and environmental laws, policies, and facts in the US, with particular emphasis on sustainable energy options in a carbon constrained world.

This position requires significant experience with energy and environmental issues as well as the desire and temperament to be a good mentor for the development of new professionals in the field. Successful candidates should possess a record of professional productivity such as academic publications, major program administration within a government or academic setting, and/or demonstrated record of changing the world through advocacy. Salary will be commensurate with experience and accomplishments. A J.D. degree is strongly preferred.

Vermont Law School, a private, independent institution located on the banks of the White River in central Vermont, is Vermont's only law school. It offers a traditional JD curriculum that emphasizes the public-serving role of lawyers, a Master of Studies in Environmental Law degree for non-lawyers, and an LLM in Environmental Law. The law school also features innovative experiential programs and is home to the Environmental Law Center and the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic.

Application deadline: April 15, 2010
Start date by mutual agreement, but no later than August 15, 2010.

Please send cover letter (expression of interest), references and resume to:

Email: jobs@vermontlaw.edu

Mail: Diane Hayes, Director of Human Resources
Vermont Law School
PO Box 96
Chelsea Street
South Royalton, VT 05068

Fax: (802) 831-1212

Vermont Law School is an EEO employer.