A Strategy For Meeting The Energy Challenge

There are two main energy challenges: tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions; and ensuring clean and affordable energy as the country becomes increasingly dependent on imported fuel. These challenges have to be met against the backdrop of rising fossil fuel prices; slower than anticipated liberalisation of the EU energy markets; heightened awareness of the risk arising from remaining oil and gas reserves being concentrated in a few geographical regions; and a need for substantial new investment in power stations, the electricity grid and gas infrastructure. This White Paper sets out the Governments international and domestic strategy to address these challenges and ways to implement the Energy Review of 2006 and the 2006 Pre-Budget Report. There is a separate consultation document on nuclear power.

The May 2007 White Paper "Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on energy" (Cm. 7124, ISBN 9780101712422) set out the Government's international and domestic strategy to address the two main challenges: tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions; and ensuring clean and affordable energy as the country becomes increasingly dependent on imported fuel. An online consultation on nuclear power and the role of the private sector: www.direct.gov.uk/nuclearpower2007 was produced at the same time. This White Paper sets out the Government's decision taken in response to the consultation. The Government believes it is in the public interest that new nuclear power stations should have a role to play in the country's future energy mix alongside other low-carbon sources; that energy companies should have the option of investing in them; and that the Government should take active steps to open up the way to the construction of new nuclear power stations. It will be for the energy companies to fund, develop and build the new stations, including meeting the full costs of decommissioning and their full share of waste management costs. Section 1 summarises the consultation process. Section 2 addresses the key issues that arose from the consultation and how they have been taken into account in shaping policy and reaching conclusions. Section 3 outlines the facilitative actions the Government will take to reduce the regulatory and planning risks associated with investing in new nuclear power stations. Finally there are three annexes: alternatives to nuclear power; justification and strategic siting assessment processes; regulatory and advisory structure for nuclear power.

The enormous challenge of creating a longterm sustainable energy system calls for the participation of engineers, natural and social scientists. They can contribute both through their research and by helping to craft strategies that steer the future development of the system. A sustainable energy system cannot be developed by technical fixes alone; action is required on a broad front, including institutional and regulatory changes. There is an abundance of scientific evidence on which to base decisions on how to proceed. Still, research has a crucial role to play as well.Smart Energy Strategies highlights smart solutions: advances in technical and social-science energy research, particularly advances related to new information technology (e.g. control and communication); and experience with targeted applications of information technology in the supply and consumption of energy. The conference has focused on smart strategies taking into account current technical and institutional systems, with their inertia and shortcomings; future energy-related challenges: energy security; the growing energy needs of the disadvantaged; and unintended consequences of energy systems, particularly climate change but also uncontrolled money flows; smart technical, institutional, and regulatory mechanisms for meeting these challenges.

The proceedings of a conference to examine emerging issues in 5 significant issue areas associated with energy policy: energy supply and demand; energy and the environment; management challenges at the Department of Energy (DOE); DOE's nuclear weapons complex, and emerging R&D. Includes representatives from government, industry, research institutions, and citizens' groups. Charts and tables.

Be future-proof with the energy licence! Making the economy and society fit for the future begs the question: how will the energy needs of tomorrow be met? What measures need to be implemented by companies and communities today in order to be future-proof tomorrow? Current developments like power line conflicts, the phase-out of nuclear energy and meeting growing supply expectations demonstrate that, to solve this strategic challenge, decision-makers from business, politics and the wider community have to develop new sets of skills and foresight competencies. In this book, the authors set out the possible scenarios, their consequences and the essential factors for securing tomorrow's energy supply. They also provide the information needed by readers to earn their 'energy licence'. It's a licence designed to qualify the holder to recognise key developments, trends and options for the energy future, and to take the necessary action within their own organisations.

Powering the Armed Forces offers a perspective on the impressive work now under way in the US military forces to address energy challenges and ultimately achieve energy security. Drawn from a Hoover Institution conference in December 2011, contributors to the book include senior defense officials from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Departments of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, as well as representatives from the National Defense University and Naval Postgraduate School. The authors discuss energy security and the defense department’s contribution to energy issues from the strategic level to the operational and tactical battlefield environment. They reveal how energy critically relates to our national security mission and to the effectiveness and safety of our men and women fighting on land, at sea, and in the air. Most importantly, they show that the defense department is committed to improving our nation’s energy position and to demonstrating its ability to influence events through its commitment to sound policies and tangible contributions across the spectrum of energy security.

This Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report (IPCC-SRREN) assesses the potential role of renewable energy in the mitigation of climate change. It covers the six most important renewable energy sources - bioenergy, solar, geothermal, hydropower, ocean and wind energy - as well as their integration into present and future energy systems. It considers the environmental and social consequences associated with the deployment of these technologies, and presents strategies to overcome technical as well as non-technical obstacles to their application and diffusion. SRREN brings a broad spectrum of technology-specific experts together with scientists studying energy systems as a whole. Prepared following strict IPCC procedures, it presents an impartial assessment of the current state of knowledge: it is policy relevant but not policy prescriptive. SRREN is an invaluable assessment of the potential role of renewable energy for the mitigation of climate change for policymakers, the private sector, and academic researchers.