Contested energy futures: Shaping renewable energy narratives in Australia

Narratives and discourses are central to how we interpret and understand the world. The capacity to construct and disseminate compelling stories about particular issues is hence critical to an agent's capacity to advance their interests. This paper examines some of the main narratives through which the conversation about renewable energy in Australia takes place. We label these narratives feasibility (‘Pie in the Sky’); security (‘Keeping the Lights on’); cost (‘Costing the Earth’); and employment (‘Jobs Carnage’). Some of the most effective narratives are those that are constructed around some of the ‘legitimate’ concerns that pertain to an issue. The renewable energy narratives identified in this paper build on ‘reasonableness’ and ‘common sense’ concerns, and their effectiveness is determined as much by contextualising information absent from the energy conversation as present. While our focus is Australia, some of the narrative dynamics revealed have application to energy politics more broadly.     

Performance of renewable energy technologies under the CDM

While many different greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation technologies can be implemented under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), renewable energy technologies (RETs), in particular, are often viewed as one of the key solutions for achieving the CDM's goals: host-country sustainable development and cost-efficient emissions reductions. However, the viability of emission reduction projects like RETs is technology- and country-specific. To improve the CDM with respect to the diffusion of RETs, it is crucial to understand the factors that ultimately drive or hinder investments in these technologies. This study develops a methodology based on project-level, regional and global variables that can systematically assess the financial and environmental performance of CDM projects in different country contexts. We quantitatively show how six RETs (PV, wind, hydro, biomass, sewage, landfill) are impacted differently by the CDM and how this impact depends on regional conditions. While sewage and landfill are strongly affected independently of their location; wind, hydro and biomass projects experience small to medium impacts through the carbon price, and strongly depend on regional conditions. PV depends more on regional conditions than on the carbon price but is always unprofitable. Furthermore, we determine the carbon prices necessary to push these six RETs to profitability under various regional conditions. Based on these results, we derive policy recommendations to advance the interplay between international and domestic climate policy to further incentivize GHG emission reductions from RETs.     

The role of renewable energy in climate stabilization: results from the EMF27 scenarios

This paper uses the EMF27 scenarios to explore the role of renewable energy (RE) in climate change mitigation. Currently RE supplies almost 20 % of global electricity demand. Almost all EMF27 mitigation scenarios show a strong increase in renewable power production, with a substantial ramp-up of wind and solar power deployment. In many scenarios, renewables are the most important long-term mitigation option for power supply. Wind energy is competitive even without climate policy, whereas the prospects of solar photovoltaics (PV) are highly contingent on the ambitiousness of climate policy. Bioenergy is an important and versatile energy carrier; however—with the exception of low temperature heat—there is less scope for renewables other than biomass for non-electric energy supply. Despite the important role of wind and solar power in climate change mitigation scenarios with full technology availability, limiting their deployment has a relatively small effect on mitigation costs, if nuclear and carbon capture and storage (CCS)—which can serve as substitutes in low-carbon power supply—are available. Limited bioenergy availability in combination with limited wind and solar power by contrast, results in a more substantial increase in mitigation costs. While a number of robust insights emerge, the results on renewable energy deployment levels vary considerably across the models. An in-depth analysis of a subset of EMF27 reveals substantial differences in modeling approaches and parameter assumptions. To a certain degree, differences in model results can be attributed to different assumptions about technology costs, resource potentials and systems integration.     

广西风能资源评价工作探讨

分析广西风能资源评价工作取得的主要成绩和存在问题，为进一步做好广西风能资源评价工作，提出一些探讨性思路。     

广西风能资源评价工作探讨

分析广西风能资源评价工作取得的主要成绩和存在问题,为进一步做好广西风能资源评价工作,提出一些探讨性思路。     

Generalized available potential energy

The kinetic energy generation in either the dry or moist atmosphere may be estimated by the same relationships if we introduce the new concept of generalized available potential energy. The largest magnitude of generalized availa-ble potential energy and corresponding reference state of either dry or moist atmosphere are calculated in terms of the initial conditions and entropy variation of the atmosphere. The obtained relationships are applicable for the statically unstable atmosphere as well. The generalized available potential energy associated with reversible processes reaches the maximum with respect to same initial state. While the generation of kinetic energy in irreversible processes is characterized by sudden changes. When the reference state is assumed to be saturated, we may predict the final tem-perature and moisture fields corresponding to provided initial state and entropy variation.     

Ecological and social constraints are key for voluntary investments into renewable natural resources

Encouraging pro-environmental behavior is an urgent global challenge. An interdisciplinary framework covering governance, economic, social, ecological, and psychological dimensions is required to understand the salient features that encourage pro-environmental outcomes within and across contexts. We apply the Ostrom social-ecological systems framework to model voluntary investments by members of civil society into the aquatic environment. Using a data set of 1,809 angling clubs managing water bodies for fish stocking and habitat management in Germany and France, we show that a small set of factors, most crucially social-ecological and governance context as well as social norms and other bottom-up social pressures, drive environmental investments. These factors appear to override behavioral influences from psychological variables of the decision-maker. By contrast, the contextual setting related to property rights, size of the resource system, and social expectations were found to be strongly related to behavioral decisions, highlighting that the social-ecological context as well as incentives may be more important than knowledge and cognitions in driving certain pro-environmental actions.     

1979—2018年西藏自治区气候与冰川冻土变化及其对可再生能源的潜在影响

作为全球气候变化敏感区和生态脆弱区,西藏地区拥有丰富的可再生能源。本研究基于多源数据产品（地基和遥感观测）分析了近40 a（1979-2018年）西藏自治区气候和冰川冻土的变化状况及它们对可再生能源的潜在影响。结果表明：1）1979-2018年间藏北高原暖湿化,藏南暖干化。全区站点平均升温速率高达0.54℃·（10 a）^-1;藏南降水略有减少而藏北降水增加;2）日照时数和风速普遍显著下降,但风速在2002年左右停止下降,2010年以后有所回升;3）在快速升温下,西藏地区冰川快速退缩,其中以藏东南地区和念青唐古拉山的退缩幅度最大,冰川最大减薄速率可达8.0 m·（10 a）^-1;多年冻土所占面积约43%,但稳定性较弱,退化严重。冰川退缩和冻土退化在短期内对河流径流有所贡献。因此,过去40 a西藏太阳能和风能减少,水能因冰川冻土变化的贡献有所增加,但预测水能的未来变化比较困难。     

Role of renewable energy in climate mitigation: a synthesis of recent scenarios

The role of renewable energy in climate change mitigation is explored through a review of 162 recent medium- to long-term scenarios from 15 large-scale, energy-economic and integrated assessment models. The current state of knowledge from this community is assessed and its implications drawn for the strategic context in which policymakers and other decision-makers might consider renewable energy. The scenario set is distinguished from previous ones in that it contains more detailed information on renewable deployment levels. All the scenarios in this study were published during or after 2006. Within the context of a large-scale assessment, the analysis is guided primarily by four questions. What sorts of future levels of renewable energy deployment are consistent with different CO₂ concentration goals? Which classes of renewable energy will be the most prominent energy producers and how quickly might they expand production? Where might an expansion in renewable energy occur? What is the linkage between the costs of mitigation and an expansion of renewable energy?     

Available potential energy in the atmosphere

Summary The study of available potential energy is approached in a new way. According to the second law of thermodynamics, we may find, from among the states which can be attained through all the actual processes in an isolated atmosphere, the limit state, referred to as the lowest state, that is achieved by means of reversible processes and possesses the least total potential energy. Thus, the maximum available potential energy can be estimated by taking the lowest state as the reference state. The variations of the lowest state and maximum available potential energy with baroclinity and mean static stability are illustrated graphically as some examples in the text. This study gives a more fundamental understanding for the kinetic energy generation in the baroclinic atmosphere. Also, the extreme kinetic generation in irreversible processes is investigated. The obtained results may be adopted for the energetics of explosive systems in the atmosphere.With 10 Figures     

贵州省风能资源评价的相关计算

就贵州风能资源评价的相关计算方法及初步成果进行了介绍。     

Available equivalent potential energy in moist atmospheres

Summary The equivalent potential energy of the moist atmosphere is defined as the sum of its total potential energy and latent heat. The available equivalent potential energy is the amount of equivalent potential energy available for conversion into kinetic energy. For the isolated moist atmospheres, we may find the equivalent lowest state which is the limit of the states attained through all the actual processes involving water condensation and possesses the least equivalent potential energy. Thus, the maximum available equivalent potential energy with respect to the equivalent lowest state can be estimated for any provided initial state. This study may extend the understanding for the development of precipitation systems in the moist atmosphere.With 5 Figures     

Policy making for renewable energy in India: lessons from wind and solar power sectors

It is clear that developing countries will have to be part of the global mitigation effort to avoid ‘dangerous climate change’, and, indeed, many of them are already undertaking significant actions on multiple fronts to help address this problem, even if they have not yet taken on legally binding commitment under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Since the deployment of GHG-mitigating technologies is already a significant part of this effort and likely to be even more so in the future, drawing lessons from existing programmes can help accelerate and enhance the effectiveness of this deployment process. Accordingly, this article aims to examine the deployment of wind and solar power in India, paying specific attention to the role of public policy in incentivizing and facilitating this deployment, how these policies have evolved over time, what has shaped this evolution, and what the learning has been over this period. Through this analysis, the intention is to draw out key lessons from India's experience with deployment policies and programmes in these two sectors and highlight the issues that will need to be given particular consideration in the design of future domestic policies and international cooperation programmes to enhance the move towards climate-compatible development in India. Many of these lessons should also be relevant for other developing countries that are attempting to balance their climate and developmental priorities through the deployment of renewable energy technologies.     

Seeking a handle on climate change: Examining the comparative effectiveness of energy efficiency improvement and renewable energy production in the United States

This study examines the comparative effectiveness of two important proposed solutions to climate change—energy efficiency improvement and the development and use of renewable energy sources. We focus specifically on their impacts on carbon dioxide emissions by conducting fixed effects regression analysis of panel data pertaining to U.S. states. The analysis reveals a negative relationship between both remedies and carbon dioxide emissions. Although the effects of these potential solutions are statistically equivalent, renewable energy production has a slight edge. Reflecting upon these findings and the larger environmental problem, we caution against exclusive reliance on efficiency improvement and renewable energy to the neglect of other important actions, such as lifestyle modifications. A broad range of social changes, which incorporate the remedies investigated in this paper, are needed to limit long-term global temperature increases to the desired level.     

The influence of future climate change on wind energy potential in the Republic of Serbia

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - In this paper, we analyzed the influence of future climate change on wind energy potential in the Republic of Serbia. We used climate projections from two...     

山东沿海风能资源分布特征及评估

利用山东省沿海测风塔70 m高度完整1 a的观测资料计算分析风能资源参数特征.结果表明：山东沿海地区平均风速与有效风功率密度分布特征相似,烟台沿海区域平均风速及有效风功率密度最大分别达到6.7 m/s、463.5 W/m²,沿海北部地区风能资源最为丰富,日照地区最少;受海陆风作用,春季风能资源最好,其次是冬季,夏季最差,风速最大值基本出现在14-16时;年有效风能时数及百分率分别为7 440 h、85%;风能密度分布基本以偏北或偏南方位较大.沿海区域风能资源分布特征与长年代评估结果及数值模拟结果基本一致.     

省级风能资源信息管理及辅助决策平台研制

风能资源的开发在湖北省已呈迅猛发展之势,但全省缺乏统一的风能资源开发的信息管理平台,不利于省级能源主管部门的科学决策和审批,亟需建立一套基于GIS技术的全省风能资源信息管理平台.在此背景下,以湖北省境内的测风数据、风能资源评估报告、风电场发电量数据、地理基础数据、高分辨率的高程数据和遥感影像数据等为基础,结合气象站数据、风能资源数值模拟数据,实现对全省风电项目建设进度的跟踪管理、测风数据的管理、风能资源分布的查询、实时数据的监控,再综合应用这些数据,通过MapGIS强大的空间分析功能,充分挖掘有价值的信息,实现了风电场的选址及辅助决策功能.     

中国1960-2016年风能资源的时空分布特征

基于462个气象观测站1960–2016年共57年的近地面风速日资料,利用克里格空间内插,最小二乘法,相关系数检验和经验正交函数分解(EOF)等方法分析了年均和各个季节中国区域风速及有效风能密度的时空变化特征。研究结果表明:在中国北部和部分沿海地区年平均风速在3 m s-1以上,有效风能密度在75 W m-2以上,而在中国南部地区平均风速和有效风能密度均较小。近五十多年以来,中国区域年均和季节平均风速呈明显下降趋势,北部地区春季递减率最大,沿海地区冬季递减率最大。广东部分地区年平均风速有增大的趋势,西南,华南和华中西部地区年平均风速变化不大。平均风速大的区域,递减率也大。年平均风速和年有效风能密度的主要空间分布模态表现出高度的一致性,均呈现逐年减小趋势。中国风速及风能资源的减小趋势,主要与全球变暖及土地利用变化有关。     

安顺市空中水资源开发潜力分析

利用安顺市各县（市）1978-2007年每日4个时次地面水汽压和降水资料,计算了每个站的可降水量,分析了该市可降水量的时空分布和多年的变化趋势。结果表明安顺市具有较大的人工增雨潜力,合理开展人工增雨工作,可有效缓解安顺市水资源时空分布不均问题。     

能量位涡在雷雨大风天气诊断分析中的应用

从大气基本运动方程及大气总能量概念出发,提出将大气动力学与能量天气学相结合的物理量——干能量位涡与湿能量位涡,并确定其守恒性.通过分析发现,以静力温度表达的能量位涡数学计算更方便,物理意义更明确.以2007年湖北的一次典型雷雨大风天气为例,对雷雨大风天气用能量位涡进行诊断分析.结果表明:本文提出的干能量位涡与湿能量位涡可以较好地预示雷雨大风天气,高空干能量位涡的增强与向下发展使对流层中下层不稳定能量增大,有利于雷雨大风天气发生;低层湿能量位涡的不稳定能量高值区与斜压系统耦合时预示该区域将有雷雨大风发生.