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The Great Plains: America’S Carbon Vault, William Davidson Dec 2016

The Great Plains: America’S Carbon Vault, William Davidson

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

As a nation we are starting a race against climate change, a competitor who has had a very long head start and only plans on picking up the pace. The Clean Power Plan has laid a blueprint to lower carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning power plants nationwide, a crucial step in recovering from decades of pollution. Meeting these goals will take years and greenhouse gasses will continue to accumulate throughout the process. Efforts beyond the scope of this plan must also be made in order to prevent emissions from sources not specifically addressed, namely sources of carbon that cannot …


Calculating The Methan-Matics Of Our Future, Victoria Salinas Dec 2016

Calculating The Methan-Matics Of Our Future, Victoria Salinas

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

In the first two decades after its release, methane, a green house gas, is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Historically, atmospheric concentrations of methane remained fairly stable at around 750 ppb, significantly less than today’s levels of 1,800 ppb. Unfortunately, agricultural activity accounts for about one-fifth of total global greenhouse gas emissions, while the current production of ruminants contributes nearly 80% of these emissions due to their large populations, body size and appetites, and the anaerobic microbial fermentation that occurs during digestion. Because of methane’s severe impact on the climate, methane emissions, specifically due to the production of …


Willingness To Pay Today For A Cleaner Tomorrow, Yukihira Naoe Dec 2016

Willingness To Pay Today For A Cleaner Tomorrow, Yukihira Naoe

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

To a ten year old boy on a tedious trip across the country side, few views are more fascinating than a wind farm. Massive turbines spin slowly as if to emphasize their preposterous size and magnificence. In an era where increasing global attention is brought to climate change, renewable energy is carving its way into the minds of billions. This once free roadside attraction is now something that in the near future, we must pay and patronize, and this is where my literature begins, how willing are we to pay for renewable energy? Are you willing to pay to give …


When Addressing Climate Change, Don’T Forget Animal Agriculture, Aaron Matzke Dec 2015

When Addressing Climate Change, Don’T Forget Animal Agriculture, Aaron Matzke

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

As COP 21 closes in Paris, global animal agriculture is a topic that has eluded the international media. Animal agriculture is responsible for more global greenhouse gas emissions than transportation according to the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization. With global population and prosperity rising, the global meat supply is expected to nearly double by 2050. This increase in production will only be achieved if significant steps are taken to promote sustainability through existing techniques globally, and to regulate air contamination in industrial feedlots in the United States. Alternative meat production methods, which have seen considerable investment recently, could supplement animal …


U.S. Vehicle Efficiency Standards, Derek Baylog Dec 2015

U.S. Vehicle Efficiency Standards, Derek Baylog

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The United States is a driving force of the global economy and a major innovator in the technology sector. For decades the world has looked to The United States as a leader of great technological advancements with the strong economy to allow investors a chance make these technologies a reality. So why is it now that we lag behind other countries when it comes to making our technology energy efficient? Sure we’ve been steadily growing our production of renewable resources with wind and solar energy, bet we are still behind in the second largest source of pollution, transportation. According to …


Energy Subsidies And The Future Of Power, Christian Jewett Dec 2015

Energy Subsidies And The Future Of Power, Christian Jewett

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The modern political climate has grown rife with talk concerning the use of fossil fuels as an energy source and how this may impact our planet for generations to come. The Left and the Right seem to be at odds over whether or not climate change is actually occurring, or who is causing it. Additionally, the energy industry likes to tout their “low-cost” energy sources as a boon to the global economy as well as a benefit to the consumer at large. However, are coal, oil, and natural gas truly the “cheapest” sources of energy? Whether or not one believes …


Making Walkable Communities, Katie Zuehlke Dec 2015

Making Walkable Communities, Katie Zuehlke

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

There is no doubt that global warming is happening. With all the rage about climate change and global warming people should be doing more about it than just reading about it in the news. We should be making efforts towards making changes on a local level. This in turn could grow to a national level with more and more people participating in the movement and actually make global changes, instead of just talking about it. When the scale of participants grows the scale of the changes made will grow as well and this will be the beginning of the changes …


Incentives Critical To Full Wind Power Potential In Nebraska, Michael Neale Dec 2015

Incentives Critical To Full Wind Power Potential In Nebraska, Michael Neale

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

On August 3rd, President Obama and the EPA announced the Clean Power Plan (CPP) with the goal of cutting 32% of carbon emissions nationwide by 2030. The plan institutes carbon reduction requirements for all states based on their current sources of energy, for Nebraska the goal is 40%. The next day, Governor Ricketts and his Attorney General announced they would be fighting the mandate in court; stating the plan is unlawful federal government overreach, while expressing concerns the reduction are infeasible in the timeframe given and will drive up electricity costs. Governor Ricketts misses the point on this. Reducing carbon …


The Tax Of The Century, Anna Wistrom Dec 2015

The Tax Of The Century, Anna Wistrom

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The current economic standing of the United States is nothing like it was back in the 20’s when “business was booming”. There are some businesses today that are still above water despite these difficult times and they are mainly fossil fuel companies. The United States, along with other develOp-ed and developing countries, has a strong and crippling addiction to these cheap and dirty fuels. The goal of several recent environmental conventions has been to find a way to decrease the amount harmful gas that is emitted from these fuels into our atmosphere. Clean energy technologies always seem to be the …


Confusing Cafe Standards, Logan Neal Dec 2015

Confusing Cafe Standards, Logan Neal

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Our homes are one of our most prized possessions, because of the many things it provides. Trying to keep your house from falling apart, can seem like a never ending task. If you neglect these tasks your house can go from a home to a death trap very quickly. While your house is your home, the earth is home to you, your home, along with generation yet to be born. Just like your individual home, the earth requires tasks to be done to keep it from killing us all. Today addressing the problem of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions needs to …


The Clean Power Plan Needs To Be A Law, Mitchell Frischmeyer Dec 2015

The Clean Power Plan Needs To Be A Law, Mitchell Frischmeyer

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The Clean Power Plan (CPP) is a long overdue policy which is necessary to direct national investment in emerging markets and create an intelligent energy infrastructure that strives to operate at max efficiency. To this point, the US has develOp-ed using inefficient and dirty fuels, a method which allowed for cheap and reliable energy generation, but is largely responsible for the change in global climate. If we expect to prevent climate change, our energy infrastructure must be reformed. Countries like Denmark have led the way in energy reform by creating policies set to reach 100% renewable generation by 2050 (8). …


Biodigestor: Rural Power Plant, Felipe Ribeiro Bozza Dec 2014

Biodigestor: Rural Power Plant, Felipe Ribeiro Bozza

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Biodigestor: Rural Power Plant


Social Policies As Subsidy For Environmental Education: A Citizen Behavioral Change Tool, Gracielle Peixoto Dec 2014

Social Policies As Subsidy For Environmental Education: A Citizen Behavioral Change Tool, Gracielle Peixoto

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Social Policies as subsidy for Environmental Education: A citizen behavioral change tool


One Tragedy, One Action, Amy Fosler Dec 2014

One Tragedy, One Action, Amy Fosler

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

One Tragedy, One Action


Leveling The Financial Playing Field For Renewables, Taylor Nissen Dec 2014

Leveling The Financial Playing Field For Renewables, Taylor Nissen

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Leveling the Financial Playing Field for Renewables


Great Economic Growth Versus Sustainability, Maria Brandao Dec 2014

Great Economic Growth Versus Sustainability, Maria Brandao

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Great Economic Growth versus Sustainability


It Is Always Possible, Ivan Makino Dec 2014

It Is Always Possible, Ivan Makino

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

It Is Always Possible


Say No To Natural Gas, Alex Bruening Dec 2014

Say No To Natural Gas, Alex Bruening

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Say No to Natural Gas


Iowa Does It Better: Necessary Role Model Needed To Up Nebraska’S Poor Recycling Diversion Rates, Brian Burris Dec 2014

Iowa Does It Better: Necessary Role Model Needed To Up Nebraska’S Poor Recycling Diversion Rates, Brian Burris

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Iowa Does It Better: Necessary Role Model needed to Up Nebraska’s Poor Recycling Diversion Rates


What The Frack?, Carson Schwalbach Dec 2014

What The Frack?, Carson Schwalbach

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

What The Frack?


Why Keystone Pipeline Xl Construction Doesn’T Matter Either Way, Melissa Allen Dec 2014

Why Keystone Pipeline Xl Construction Doesn’T Matter Either Way, Melissa Allen

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Why Keystone Pipeline XL Construction Doesn’t Matter Either Way


Biofuels: Good And Bad, Megan Neve Dec 2014

Biofuels: Good And Bad, Megan Neve

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Biofuels: Good and Bad


A Call For Congressional Climate Action, Calvin Harman Dec 2014

A Call For Congressional Climate Action, Calvin Harman

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

A Call for Congressional Climate Action


Potential Biogas Production On Livestock Operations, Mariana Baia Dec 2014

Potential Biogas Production On Livestock Operations, Mariana Baia

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Potential Biogas Production on Livestock Operations


The Clean Power Plan – Has The Epa Got It Right…, Brooke Welsh Dec 2014

The Clean Power Plan – Has The Epa Got It Right…, Brooke Welsh

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The Clean Power Plan – Has the EPA Got It Right…


The Cost Of Change, Thomas Mcguire Dec 2014

The Cost Of Change, Thomas Mcguire

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The Cost of Change


Nuclear Power Gateway To A Sustainable Energy Sector, Tyler Glewwe Dec 2014

Nuclear Power Gateway To A Sustainable Energy Sector, Tyler Glewwe

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Nuclear Power Gateway to a Sustainable Energy Sector


Energy Race To Save The Planet, Ty Rempe Dec 2014

Energy Race To Save The Planet, Ty Rempe

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Energy Race to Save the Planet


Corn Ethanol, A Bad Idea, Taylor Hackbart Dec 2014

Corn Ethanol, A Bad Idea, Taylor Hackbart

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Corn Ethanol, A Bad Idea


Hydraulic Fracturing: Restoring Public Health And Safety As A Top Priority, Brian Barnes Dec 2013

Hydraulic Fracturing: Restoring Public Health And Safety As A Top Priority, Brian Barnes

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Hydraulic Fracturing: Restoring Public Health and Safety as a Top Priority