Tag: lung damage

This may sound radical, but some people suggest that continuing to build out the fossil fuel infrastructure might not be such a good idea, given the horrific environmental consequences: water pollution, lung damage, climate change, ocean acidification, loss of biodiversity, …

Indigenous Groups, Environmentalists Score Rare Victory Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Here’s a terrific website dedicated to helping the world understand the true price of oil, i.e., that there are numerous “externalities,” or costs that are passed along to others associated with each gallon of gasoline we use.  Who’s paying the …

Price of Oil Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , ,

I sympathize with those tasked with putting a precise dollar figure on the externalities of fossil fuels. Sure we know there are costs to society in terms of lung damage and long-term environmental damage, but what are they? The story …

Estimating the Externalities of Fossil Fuels Isn’t an Easy Job Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Those outside the U.S. may not be aware of the spate of cabinet members of the Obama Administration who are resigning their posts.  I don’t know exactly what to make of this, and I most certainly don’t believe the reasons …

Steven Chu Resigns Energy Secretary Post Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Here’s an article that illustrates what happens when regulators get clever in creating incentives for environmental stewardship and responsibility: smart people work around them, unintended consequences result, and windfall profits occur in random places that have nothing to do with …

Creating the Right Incentives for Environmental Stewardship Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,

A friend of mine who had made some energy-related suggestions to President Obama just received a very thoughtful and well-written note in response, talking up the “all-of-the-above” strategy.  I respond: That’s great.  From here, I’d like to see some real …

U.S. President Obama's “All-of-the-Above” Energy Strategy Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here’s a piece in The Economist on ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) that points out the sad truth about the development of alternative energy technologies, i.e., that interest is strong when oil is expensive, but wanes to zero when oil …

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion — Good Example of a Stalled Technology Read More »

Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,