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Hydroelectric generation is a potential flexible electricity source that can ease the transition to a decarbonized energy economy. As such, using scarce hydroelectric generating resources efficiently is important. We examine approaches to represent the operating characteristics of hydroelectric resources. Many hydroelectric-plant owners use water tables or generic unit characteristics for operational planning. Such practice may be inefficient, as it does not account for unit-specific operating-characteristic changes or time-related impacts, e.g., plant degradation. We demonstrate a data-driven approach to modeling plant operations that is unit-specific and depends solely on observable and controllable variables. Numerical results using historical data for four hydroelectric units illustrate the proposed methodology.

Purpose of ReviewAs the application space for energy storage systems (ESS) grows, it is crucial to valuate the technical and economic benefits of ESS deployments. Since there are many analytical tools in this space, this paper provides a review of these tools to help the audience find the proper tools for their energy storage analyses.Recent FindingsThere are many software tools for valuating ESS. These tools can be classified into two groups: (1) power system simulation and planning tools for analyzing the technical contributions of ESSs, and (2) techno-economic analysis tools for valuating the economic benefits of ESS deployment and specifying the optimal design of energy systems that include ESSs. While many of the tools, developed by the national laboratories, are free to use, the commercial tools are also of great importance in meeting the customers’ specific needs.SummaryThis paper provides a review of software tools for ESS valuation and design. A review of analysis tools for evaluating the technical impacts of energy storage deployments is also provided, as well as a discussion of development trends for valuation and design tools.

Renewable energy research in China often underestimates the impact of non-technical or human factors on adoption, as well as the impacts of these factors on energy inequality. This review investigates how social-psychological and demographic factors influence the adoption of electric vehicles, photovoltaic panels, solar water heaters, and smart home technology, especially in rural China. Renewable energy technology adoption in China is extensive, but many social-psychological and demographics barriers to greater diffusion have not been addressed in research or policy. Studies suggest that subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, government support, and knowledge about the technology are the most important social-psychological factors affecting adoption intention in China. Demographic factors and concomitant equity issues have received little attention are largely unstudied in China-specific research and constitutes a major research gap. The limited available literature suggests that the significant demographic factors are, income, urban versus rural setting, education, and cultural values weighted towards collectivism and uncertainty avoidance. We conclude with future research opportunities and policy recommendations.

Concerns surrounding climate change are increasing pressure on policymakers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A number of policy mechanisms, including Pigouvian taxes on carbon and subsidies for and mandates on the use of carbon-free generation, are among the levers that are used to achieve this goal. A challenge that such mechanisms present is that they can distort energy markets, affecting prices and the financial viability of investing in or maintaining generating capacity. We survey literature pertaining to how policy mechanisms impact markets and short- and long-run economic signals. We present also a case study that examines these issues. Our case study uses a two-step modeling procedure. First, a long-term generation- and transmission-planning model determines the optimal technology mix that should be built to serve future loads under different climate-policy regimes. Next, a unit-commitment model is used to simulate hourly operation of the system. Combining the results of these two modeling steps, we assess the efficiency of using different policy mechanisms to achieve carbon reductions. Based on our literature survey and case study, we find that market-based policies (e.g., carbon taxes) achieve decarbonization targets most efficiently. Moreover, market-based policies are the least distortionary in terms of price formation in wholesale electricity markets.

China has increasingly been perfecting its brand of administrative rationalism to deal with varieties of environmental issues. This is mediated mainly via environmental targets and indicators with which the central authorities are evaluating environmental performance of local agents. The conventional wisdom suggests a great promise in this “scientific” and “rational” approach—at least in China, given the vertical authoritarian structure of its political economy. This article critically reviews this thesis. Recent findings show that notwithstanding the attention given to China’s cadre evaluation system and its associated indicator-based governance, whether or not this form of governance is effective remains inconclusive. On the one hand, output-oriented or output-driven policy areas have seen significant strides. On the other hand, fundamental transformations in economic restructuring, upgrading, and transition have been much more difficult to achieve with the indicator-based framework. This article points to a number of theoretical and empirical questions about China’s path towards a green, low-carbon economy should it continues to singularly rely on bureaucratic controls via indicators and metrics. A serious debate about indicator-based governance is sorely missing, and it may be fruitful to re-visit and re-think our conventional wisdoms.

Purpose of Review This article first demonstrates the natural potential of renewable energy development in BRI countries; second, the Rising Power Framework is introduced to investigate the improvement brought by BRI for renewable energy development in host countries. Finally, the political and economic challenges as well as those caused by the COVID-19 pandemic for renewable energy development are also identified. Recent Findings The review shows that the BRI project indeed improved the renewable energy development in host countries, while the scale of renewable energy development, especially solar and wind energy, is heavily dependent on the amount of funding; moreover, the degree of technological improvement is determined by host countries’ development needs and absorption capacity. Summary In conclusion, this paper proposes a consideration related to the structure of energy investment under the BRI.

Purpose of Review Energy storage systems are becoming important agents in electricity markets. They are deployed to support further integration of renewable energy sources and can offer various services to the network operators. Recent Findings As the European electricity network operation moves toward market-based decision-making, it is necessary to ensure a fair playground for all participants. This implies adaptation of regulatory framework and market rules to allow unobstructed participation of energy storage in markets at all levels. Summary This paper aims at providing a brief overview of the status of energy storage in European market framework, identifying the obstacles and proposing actions to overcome them.

This review explores the transportation implications of key scenarios for deep decarbonization. While electrification of transportation is not the only action that will be needed to reach climate-change goals, it is one necessary step. This review provides an overview of technologies available for electrification of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles, the infrastructure required to support electrification, and policy options to accelerate the transition to a cleaner transportation future. Climate studies have shown that as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions continue rising, aggressive action is needed to achieve deep decarbonization in the USA and worldwide. Transportation is the largest source of GHG emissions in the USA, and one of the largest worldwide. Experts agree that electrifying road transportation is essential to avoiding the worst impacts of climate change. Recent advances in electric vehicle (EV) technology are making electrification viable. Automakers are quickly increasing the number and diversity of commercially available EV models, and consumer awareness of EV technology is slowly growing. Studies show that policymakers can effectively accelerate transportation electrification through tax incentives, regulations, and other policy tools. All credible pathways for achieving deep decarbonization rely on complete or near-complete electrification of passenger vehicles. Advances in EV technology have made this goal feasible from a technical standpoint, though much more needs to be done to achieve rapid electrification in practice. Prospects for electrifying medium- and heavy-duty vehicles are improving, but the high mileage and heavy load requirements of these vehicles present technical challenges. Moreover, achieving widespread electrification of road transportation will require considerable expansion of EV infrastructure (e.g., charging networks), as well as upgrades to existing electric grids. Policymakers can support rapid electrification through actions including tax rebates and other incentives that encourage consumers to purchase EVs, regulations that prioritize electrification of vehicles serving transportation network companies (TNCs), and increased public investment in EV infrastructure and research.

We review the literature on the potential for electrifying energy use in residential in commercial buildings, focusing on the USA. In so doing, we identify critical economic and non-economic factors that bear on the prospects for building electrification. At present electrification is most viable in new buildings, in milder climates, where a single electric heat pump can replace both existing heating and cooling units that are at or near retirement, and especially where local gas infrastructure costs can be avoided. Per the reviewed studies, electrification is already viable in many buildings today, and likely stands to become viable in more buildings over time. A number of policy factors may promote or impede electrification; rapid electrification would likely require significant policy intervention. The literature is mostly focused on residential buildings and additional research on commercial buildings would be welcome.

Purpose of Review This paper assesses social science research relating to BECCS and considers the applicability of research on CCS to BECCS. Recent Findings In recent years, social science research on CCS and BECCS has gone beyond an evaluation of public acceptance to provide a more nuanced analysis of the wider social political, ethical, and governance contexts in which large-scale deployment might be achieved. This raises issues at global, local, and regional scales, requiring a wide array of methods and approaches. Summary Awareness of the scale and urgency needed to act on climate change is growing and the role of BECCS in delivering carbon dioxide removal forms a central argument for the use of this family of technologies. Here, framing becomes a critical factor in how society responds to BECCS technologies and we argue that making the case for BECCS as a means of extending mitigation to make a ‘net zero’ goal achievable could be the key to its acceptable and sustainable deployment.

This paper highlights the main impacts of transportation and building electrification on electricity grid infrastructure, operations, and planning. We focus on which electric technologies are expected to grow, how electrification will impact electricity demand and grid activities, and which solutions might improve the integration of these technologies. Recent industry reports show increasing projections of electrification technologies in the coming decades. Studies show that increased demand from electrification will likely require grid capacity expansion and make grid operations and planning more challenging; however, multiple non-wires solutions exist to ensure integration is efficient and cost-effective. Electrification of space heating and especially transportation is expected to have the largest impact on electricity demand in the near future. Uncontrolled electric vehicle charging poses a significant challenge to grid operations, but control strategies create an opportunity for improved efficiency. Other insights include a high level of uncertainty in electrification adoption and potential benefits of combining electrification technologies with renewable generation and energy storage.

What do we know about community scale perceptions and desirability of BECCS? What does research on the governance of BECCS say about policy relevant to community scale challenges and opportunities? The social acceptability of BECCS is influenced by contextual factors such as the source and use of the CO2, and the policy environment. Sustainable BECCS has a particular geography, and communities may be affected by its system boundaries and requirements in terms of feedstocks, transport, and infrastructure design. BECCS cannot be viewed on just the community scale without considering how national and global scales influence system design. The limited research relevant to BECCS on the community scale looks at public acceptance or social license, rather than opportunities for communities. Future research can move beyond “social impact” to study “social demand” for BECCS, and identify opportunities for communities along the farm-to-underground or farm-to-product chain.

Since California adopted its energy storage mandate in 2013, 14 other states have developed energy storage policies designed to encourage adoption or reduce barriers. This paper reviews those efforts to identify what types of policies are being developed, the underlying goals and rationale behind different approaches, and the early outcomes of those policies. State activity related to energy storage has accelerated in recent years, and numerous policies have emerged. Generally, those policies take one of two approaches: facilitating operational experience with energy storage by ensuring its presence on the grid, or enabling future deployments by removing or reducing barriers. Through detailed review of state policy actions, this paper explores the drivers, design, and implementation of these five specific types of energy storage policy. A taxonomy of state policies related to energy storage is presented, as well as recent research findings that support the different approaches and specific examples of how, where, and why those policies have been implemented. Finally, early impacts of these policies are considered.

Renewable energy (RE) can play a critical role in sustainable development in Africa. We conducted a focused literature review on articles discussing the conditions of deployment of renewable energy resources in Africa, with the goal to understand the latest research trends, questions and issues on this topic. Our search period is limited to 2013–early 2018. The review did not attempt to provide an exhaustive analysis but rather to provide a snapshot of pertinent questions to distil specific issues. The thematic analysis of the literature revealed the following trends: the success of RE in the region has been limited by a combination of factors which include poor institutional framework and infrastructure, high initial capital costs, weak dissemination strategies, lack of skilled manpower, poor baseline information and weak maintenance service. Future solutions to deploy RE in Africa and bridge the financing gap will require renewed efforts in current approaches as well as new approaches.

This paper explores the role renewable energy can play in supporting sustainable electricity access in Africa, with a particular focus on the challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa. The studies in this review highlight various power system analyses across multiple regions in Africa. These studies provide high-resolution multi-criteria data for geographic siting of renewable energy, assess the scale of generation expansion needed to achieve universal access, and demonstrate innovative modeling techniques that plan for on-grid and off-grid systems concurrently. This review also highlights the challenges of power sector finance in Africa and discusses the emerging literature on broadening energy planning beyond techno-economic approaches. Altogether, these studies enable a deeper understanding of the benefits of renewable energy adoption and integration in the region. Africa is experiencing a persistent, complex, and multi-faceted electricity gap. Renewable energy presents opportunities for Africa to achieve full electricity access in an economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable manner.

The paper focuses on the progress related to models and approaches for an optimal design and management of biomass supply chains. A literature review has been conducted, and previous review papers have been used as bases. Do most of the current models adopt the same decision level, mathematical methodology and type of objective of those identified by previous reviews? Are there any innovative approaches to revitalise the considered research topic? Most of the works published in 2017 and in early 2018 reflect the past literature reviews; regrettably, few relevant advances have been achieved in the recent period to face up the major gaps. Innovative works apply Life Cycle Assessment, Multi-Criteria Analysis, CyberGIS or Agent-Based approaches to biomass supply chain optimisation. Future research should address, for instance, sustainability of biomass supply chains through a more comprehensive approach including economic, environmental, social and policy-related issues, integration of the decision levels to meet the needs of different stakeholders.

Purpose of Review: This article describes challenges that should be overcome towards implementation of low-temperature district heating (LTDH). The trends in development, operational issues, and legislative framework were revised. Recent Findings: The new substation design with solutions to avoid legionella bacteria issue, improved network topology and control strategies, opportunities of LTDH for buildings under various renovation stages and construction year were identified as the most crucial for the transition to 4th generation district heating (DH). Importance of heat load aggregation to avoid peak load issue in the areas with low-energy buildings (LEB) and solutions for transition from high temperature to low temperatures in the DH network have been shown. Summary: The findings indicate that there is a huge potential for achieving low-carbon society and improvement in energy efficiency under transition to LTDH. The solutions for transition from high-temperature DH to LTDH exist; however, they need good policies and market availability to be implemented. This is a pre-print of an article published in [Curr Sustainable Renewable Energy Reports]. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40518-018-0111-y

In view of the zero energy buildings challenge, and the anticipated contribution of low-carbon building services, this paper focuses on the state of the art in the field of biomass boilers used for the built environment. A literature review was implemented, aiming to reveal what is the current position of this technology and what are the obstacles the research community should overcome towards establishing this technology in the building sector’s decarbonization era. Environmental concerns regarding the emission of biomass boilers have recently been regulated through competent European regulations within the eco-design regulation series. Issues concerning the quality of biofuels used in biomass boilers are also managed through a recently published series of European standards, which define the elemental and proximal requirements of the applied fuels. Scientific research in the field of ash management also delivered consistent solutions for the exploitation of this stream in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner. Recent advancements in the applications of biomass boilers reveal that the readiness of the technology is at the highest possible levels, and should be considered as a reliable alternative for nearly zero energy buildings.

This paper reviews the data mining (DM)-related research and applications at the building operation stage. It aims to summarize DM-based solutions for building energy management and reveal current research and development outcomes in analyzing massive building operational data using advanced DM techniques. Previous studies mainly adopt DM techniques for two tasks, i.e., (1) predictive modeling; (2) fault detection and diagnosis. The knowledge discovered has been successfully utilized to facilitate the decision-making during building operations. Domain expertise play the dominant role in the knowledge discovery process, which limits the chance of discovering novel knowledge. DM is a promising technology for the development of intelligent and automated building management systems. Despite encouraging results, more research efforts should be made in (1) exploring the usefulness of unsupervised DM, (2) developing generic analytic frameworks, and (3) analyzing unstructured and multi-relational data sets.

This review analyzes trends in the increasing number of local energy efficiency activities through a study of the findings of the 2017 City Energy Efficiency Scorecard. The review also examines recent literature to provide a greater understanding of select policies’ potential effectiveness and outcomes, as well as possible policy improvements. Within the last few years, municipalities have made more commitments to reduce energy use and have taken more action to achieve their goals. Cities have set energy savings goals, adopted building energy codes, collaborated with their utilities to deliver energy efficiency programs, and more. Some of the increased activity is due to a broader focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but cities continue to use energy efficiency for achieving other priorities too, including lowering government expenditures and increasing economic development. A review of recent research also shows the importance of evaluating local energy efficiency efforts. Further research will provide better data on the energy savings potential of these activities and provide insight on potential improvements in policy planning and implementation. The results indicate that local policymakers have expanded their focus on building energy benchmarking and transparency as well as mode-shift strategies for transportation, though transportation policies are less of a focus than those aimed at energy use in buildings.

The purpose of this article is to review and synthesize recent scholarship on stakeholder engagement in electric sector governance, placing research within a framework for understanding the role that stakeholders play in regulation and governance. Collaborative, multi-actor forums have developed to assist in the governance of electricity transmission and state-level clean energy activities, allowing stakeholders with divergent interests to help resolve political and technical challenges related to increased use of renewable and distributed electricity. The traditional approaches to electric sector regulation are ill-suited to address the opportunities and challenges facing the sector today. In response to changing conditions in the electric sector, many jurisdictions and regions have developed more flexible, cooperative, deliberative, and inclusive approaches to governance that encourage diverse stakeholders to work together to resolve emerging issues and coordinate between policy venues.

This paper focuses on the impact of state renewable energy policies in the decentralized, patchwork energy policy framework of the present-day USA. Approaches in two states in particular, New York and Texas, are assessed qualitatively and quantitatively to gain further insights. Previous research has highlighted the importance of state-level policy making in the within the USA and—by extension—on the international stage. Studies have also shown that policy factors in the form of RPS programs, siting, and permitting, and other incentives can drive renewable energy capacity growth and consumer markets. The paper finds that—through 2016—varying degrees of success in developing wind and solar markets have been achieved, including dramatic growth of large scale wind in Texas and more modest utility scale wind coupled with strong distributed PV growth in New York. Analysis and discussion also provides potential insights for state policymakers on the efficacy of various incentive structures, infrastructure and siting regimes, and other instruments in producing desired outcomes.

In this paper, we study the literature on cyber-physical security of electrical power systems. The paper is intended to address the security strengths and weaknesses of the electrical power systems against malicious attacks. The concept of holistic resilience cycle (HRC) is introduced to improve cyber-physical security of electrical power systems. HRC is a systematic view to the security of the power systems, characterized by its four stages as closely interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole. HRC includes four stages of prevention and planning, detection, mitigation and response, and system recovery. Power systems are evolving from traditional settings towards more autonomous and smart grids. Cyber-physical security is critical for the safe and secure operations of the power systems. To achieve a higher security level for power systems, the research community should follow a systematic approach and consider all stages of the holistic resilience cycle in addressing security problems of the power systems.

Residential energy performance prediction has historically received less attention, as compared to commercial buildings. This likely is in part due to the limited availability of residential energy data, as well as the relative challenge of predicting energy consumption of buildings that are more highly dependent on occupant behavior. The purpose of this effort is to assess the types and characteristics of energy and non-energy data available for algorithm developed and methods that have been developed to predict residential consumption. While there are several large residential building energy datasets, data availability is still generally very limited. Most energy prediction methods used recently include data-driven approaches, as well as combinations of multiple methods; however, many methods have not been tested for residential buildings, or at a range of energy data frequencies. The literature points to the need for the availability of more residential building data sources to be able to assess and improve models, and further testing is needed including those models that have not yet been significantly used for residential buildings.

This paper introduces the major state-level regulations and policies for improving energy efficiency in buildings. The purpose of the review is to discuss the challenges and issues in policy implementation and the latest trend in adopting innovative instruments. The implementation of customer efficiency programs increasingly incorporates non-price instruments to encourage participation and deep savings. States pay attention to not only code adoption and update but also compliance and evaluation. Many states have adopted innovative policy instruments, including decoupling mechanisms and performance incentives to make energy efficiency a good business model for utilities, dynamic pricing to reduce consumption and peak load, flexible financing to provide incentives, and green labeling and benchmarking policies to increase information transparency. State governments continue to be the primary decision-makers for improving energy efficiency in buildings. Combined efforts on code/standard compliance and innovative policies are the leading strategy to promote energy efficiency.

This paper provides a reader who has little to none technical chemistry background with an overview of the working principles of lithium-ion batteries specifically for grid-scale applications. It also provides a comparison of the electrode chemistries that show better performance for each grid application. Two of the main causes driving the growth of stationary energy storage technologies are the increasing environmental regulations that promote a high penetration of non-dispatchable generation and policy changes in the electricity markets that benefit the profit of fast response energy resources such as a battery. The combination of these two factors is drawing the attention of investors toward lithium-ion grid-scale energy storage systems. We review the relevant metrics of a battery for grid-scale energy storage. A simple yet detailed explanation of the functions and the necessary characteristics of each component in a lithium-ion battery is provided. We also discuss the chemistries currently used for cathode and anode materials. Discussed will be the trade-off of several materials with respect to cost, thermal stability, cyclability, environmental friendliness, and other important characteristics to be considered for grid applications. This paper also discusses the commercial availability of lithium-ion batteries for grid-scale storage and presents some of the containerized battery storage solutions available in the market.

Purpose of Review The purposes of this paper are to examine the literature for common threads and attributes inherent to scientific-based communities of practice, and to identify challenges and potential solutions for building a community of scientists to address the water-energy-food nexus.

The goal of the case study is to provide an outline of the “governance” group’s approach to conducting research on nexus issues in this case study. A significant part of the Texas A&M Water-Energy-Food Nexus initiative focuses on issues of governance and public policy. The governance and public policy element of this initiative represents one potentially unique contribution to the applied scholarship on nexus issues writ large. Both as a significant research project in its own right, and as a proof-of-concept effort, the initiative has decided to engage in a significant collaborative research project centered on a San Antonio Region Case Study.

Existing assessment and decision support tools have limited application to real-world food-energy-water (FEW) Nexus challenges. Integrated assessment approaches are often discipline-specific or highly theoretical, lacking grounding in real-world FEW issues. FEW systems require application of integrated techniques that address multiple attributes of trade-off analyses, dynamic and disparate datasets, and difficult decision contexts. Research must enable: appropriate tool sets matched with FEW Nexus hotspots; customizing existing tools to fit local specifics; compatibility between collected data and integrative nexus assessment tool needs; evaluation of these assessments through incorporation of stakeholder input and guidance forward for solution implementation. The core challenge is identification and design of a set of strategies that are robust under various future conditions (scenarios). Successful strategies must address natural, technological, and human system settings. Approaches that clarify the range of beneficial and potentially adverse trade-offs will support the identification of decisions and intervention options.

The purpose of this review was to discuss challenges regarding model use in water energy food nexus analysis. Water, energy, and food (WEF) nexus analysis endeavors are relatively new. Modeling systems are just evolving and there are challenges that arise in performing high-quality analysis. We discuss many of these. Nexus modeling must represent and describe complex interrelationships among WEF systems. Modeling is a necessity as the nexus approach is about widening perspectives to unexplored levels. Nexus analysis systems must consider situations that vary from place to place and over time while integrating a family of models that address various components. Challenges arise in representing an appropriate geographic region while encompassing the relevant WEF using/producing activities along with heterogeneous, situation-specific, component interrelationships in a manner that supports decisions. Accounting for uncertainty and the evolution of population along with changes in biophysical, socioeconomic, economic, and climatic elements over time further compounds the challenge. In addition, challenges arise when one needs to describe previously unimplemented strategies both now and into an uncertain future represented by climate change, population growth, and other interacting forces. Comprehensive studies are needed to address these challenges and show the value of WEF nexus analysis. This paper addresses modeling-related challenges that arise when considering how to perform informative and accurate WEF nexus analyses.

Hong Kong is a Special Administration Region of the People’s Republic of China and one of the most developed cities in the country. Although Hong Kong has good potential solar, wind, and waste-to-energy, the development of renewable energy in the region has been lagging. Renewable energies remain a negligible player in the city’s energy system, contributing to less than 1% of total energy consumption. This article critically reviews the potential and current development of renewable energy in Hong Kong and identifies key barriers. In concluding, this article outlines some considerations that need to be made to advance renewable energy development in Hong Kong.

Purpose of Review The goal of this paper is to structure the vast amount of research on occupant behaviour published recently and to relate these to the question, how this body of research can lead to increased energy efficiency in buildings.

Sustainable building construction is one of the fastest-growing industries in the USA. Changes in materials, products, designs, and methodologies are occurring to accommodate this green progression. While these changes have energy and environmental benefits, questions have been raised about impacts on fire safety. There are two major reasons to consider the nexus of fire safety and sustainable design. First is a concern for the environment and how a building fire would cause environmental harm. It is possible that a single fire event can negate several, if not all, elements of green design. Second is a concern that sustainable design features will cause unintended increased fire risk or hazards. Sustainable design is a relatively new market with some unconventional materials, techniques, and features that have not yet been proven with time, which introduces risk of unintentional consequences. Moving forward, it would be valuable to integrate green design with fire safety such that they reinforce rather than undermine each other. This article seeks to examine the relationship between fire safety and sustainability in buildings, discuss the status of the fire and sustainability communities, and recommend avenues for development and implementation to promote fire-safe sustainable designs. Such avenues include incorporating greywater and rainwater reuse systems with fire sprinklers, fire alerts and controls in building automation systems, better safety mechanisms and designs for on-site energy production and storage, and less combustible and more resilient structural elements and insulation.

Awareness is a key factor in promoting renewable energy proliferation. Although a large number of people are aware of the importance of energy and its role in the growth and development of the nation, it is also very much comprehendible that there is a yawning gap which needs to be addressed in the area of energy education and awareness in India. This paper aims to address the issue of energy proliferation strategy in India. Among Indian audiences, renewable energy and its resources have lower awareness levels. For most, energy is limited to conventional sources. People are familiar but not educated on popular energy issues. Much effort has been showered by government departments and other agencies in India over the past decade in the form of launching various schemes at school, city, and village block levels, but most these have come at abstract timings. Also, the advertising campaigns have been too heavy upon the target audiences leaving them half-baked. The paper proposes a strategic and regimented approach model towards target audiences, preparing them thoroughly before actually disseminating the knowledge package to them.

Global development of the biofuel sector is pro- ceeding rapidly. Biofuel feedstock continues to be produced from a variety of agricultural and forestry resources. Large- scale feedstock production for biofuels could change the land- scape structure and affect water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem services in positive or negative ways. With rapid advancements in computation technologies and science, field- and watershed-scale models have become a vital tool for quantifying water quality and ecosystem responses to bioenergy landscape and management practices. This paper presents a brief review of the development and application of field- and watershed-scale models in quantifying water quality and management practices and then discusses a num- ber of critical issues associated with applying these models. In conclusion, the paper identifies specific areas that need im- provement and new capabilities for currently used models and addresses challenges in enhancing existing models or devel- oping more sophisticated new models.

The field of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) has witnessed significantly increased activity in recent years, with the application of modern control, communications, and information technology to vehicles, roadway infrastructure, and traffic information systems. The primary objectives of ITS have been focused primarily on improving safety and increasing mobility and associated transportation efficiency. In addition, it is now well known that ITS technology can be used to reduce transportation-related environmental impacts. These environmental impacts include pollutant emissions that lead to poor air quality, as well as energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Over the years, we have seen many ITS programs focusing on safety and mobility that end up also having significant environmental benefits. These benefits range widely due to a number of variables. However in recent years, a number of ITS research programs have emerged that are specifically designed to minimize the environmental impacts of transportation. In this manuscript, we briefly outline how the different areas of ITS can impact GHG emissions and then describe a number of recent ITS programs that are specifically aimed at reducing energy and environmental impacts. These environmental ITS programs typically show energy and emission reductions on the order of 5–15 %.

Solar energy has recently become the subject of heated policy debate across the United States, particularly at the state level. Proponents note that it provides a variety of environmental, public health, and economic development benefits for society and argue that it can help support electric grid operations. Many electric utilities, however, contend that the growth of customer-owned, distributed solar energy systems will create costs that the utilities must pass on to ratepayers. This debate has led to a wide range of technical reports seeking to quantify the costs and benefits of solar energy to electric utilities, ratepayers, and society at large. We review these studies, discuss the different perspectives that they represent, and identify the key variables that have shaped this value-of-solar debate. We conclude by discussing future research opportunities that could help to maximize the benefits of solar energy use while minimizing its potential negative impacts.

This paper synthesizes the most recent studies on the lifecycle of electric vehicles (EVs), summarizes the critical assumptions and inputs of the lifecycle assessments (LCAs), and discusses policy context affecting these assessments. The use phase represents the majority of environmental impacts for EVs, particularly in areas with more fossil fuel use in the electricity grid mix. Assumptions made in LCAs about electricity generation, vehicle lifetime, vehicle weight, and driving behavior greatly impact the resulting lifecycle energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of EVs. However, vehicle and battery considerations outside of vehicle use affect the lifecycle environmental performance of EVs as well. The battery manufacturing and end-of-life (EOL) technologies and processes are still being developed and researched, and manufacturing batteries has some uncertainties but is a large contributor to the manufacturing emissions of EVs. Recycling and second-life applications present an opportunity for increasing the value and lowering environmental impacts of EV batteries. Policies today help to get EVs on the road by reducing costs to own EVs, but more research and policies can be developed to improve the state of battery technology. Future policies focusing on battery manufacturing and EOL and a cleaner electricity grid can have the potential to reduce the environmental burden of EVs by encouraging recycling batteries, producing batteries more efficiently, and reducing emissions from the electricity grid.

In this article, we explore the links between urban form, land use planning, and energy use. We organize the reviewed literature as follows: (1) potential energy savings from compact development; (2) achieving compact development through land use regulations; and (3) approaches for coordinating land use regulations regionally. We find that while the literature shows a clear link between regional governance, urban form outcomes, and energy use, questions remain on measuring the impact and communicating the degree to which energy use benefits can offset other real and perceived costs associated with greater land use regulation and regional coordination. Our discussion focuses on how researchers, practitioners, and policymakers can better leverage these connections.

Energy transitions are thoroughly social affairs. Despite this fact, energy policy rarely incorporates the social dimensions of energy systems change in an intentional, explicit, and broad fashion. Reviewing extensive recent research, we introduce the concept of social planning for energy transitions as an innovative framing for energy policy that can accompany technical and economic analyses and decision-making, especially in the current context of flux and uncertainty in the energy sector. We define social planning as understanding and preparing for the societal outcomes of energy transitions, as well as developing strategies to incorporate these considerations into energy policy. We review five areas of capacity-building for social planning in energy transitions: mapping socio-energy relationships, envisioning socio-energy futures, designing just socio-energy systems, building socio-energy partnerships, and governing socio-energy transitions.

As new transportation technologies, travel behaviors, and fuels emerge, there is opportunity to proactively assess environmental impacts to ensure that reductions occur and unintended tradeoffs are avoided. This article summarizes the goals, scope, and findings of a special issue on transportation sustainability. The special issue provides an overview of recent research and policies on autonomous vehicles, electric vehicles, on-demand mobility (including carsharing), intelligent transportation systems, and biofuels and their expected environmental effects. The reviews show that there are efforts underway to understand the environmental impacts of changes in transportation systems that may lead to technology designs and deployment strategies for environmental sustainability.

The original version of this article, published in Current Sustainable Renewable Energy Reports, Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2017, inadvertently misspelled an author’s last name on the title page as Haimanote Baybil. The correct name is Haimanote Bayabil.