Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Three Essays On Environmental And Energy Economics, Maher F. Mekky

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

In this dissertation, three related topics are investigated about environmental and energy economics. The research in these essays utilize panel data and regression models. The overall theme of these essays is to explore the relationships between energy and the environment in the United States (U.S.).

In the first essay, using data from fifty U.S. states between 2012 and 2020, the impacts of three types of state level policies on electric vehicles (EV) adoption are examined: 1) policies that mitigate the environmental impacts from energy production, 2) policies that provide financial incentives to consumers for EV purchase, and 3) policies that …

“The Real Cost Of Mining: How Digging For Rare Earth Metals Could Pose A Greater Cost Than Evs Can Save”, Brahim Khalil Yatim

Honors Theses and Capstones

The Paris Climate Agreement proposes to have 20% of all road transport vehicles be electric by the year 2030. Implementation of this policy is critical to help obtain a 2 degrees Celsius reduction in the increase of global temperatures by 2030. This paper dives into the true costs of taking on a project that large scale. This study finds that though the benefits of this project would result in a 351,785,600 tons of GHG saved by the electric conversion there are significant environmental and human costs associated with the mining necessary to complete the agreement's goal. With current technologies and …

Sustaining Uber: Opportunities For Electric Vehicle Integration, David Wagner

Pomona Senior Theses

Uber and Lyft, the “unregulated taxis” that are putting traditional taxi companies out of business, are expanding quickly and changing the landscape of urban transportation as they go. This thesis analyzes the environmental impacts of Transportation Network Companies, particularly in California, with respect to travel behavior, congestion, and fuel efficiency. The analysis suggests that fuel efficient taxis are being replaced by less fuel efficient Uber and Lyft vehicles. Linear regressions were run on data from the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project’s Electric Vehicle Consumer Survey of electric vehicle owners in California. The findings indicate that Uber drivers are more reliant upon …

Vehicle To Grid: An Economic And Technological Key To California's Renewable Future, Jackson C. Rafter

Pomona Senior Theses

This paper explores how the concept of Vehicle to Grid (V2G) could bring benefits to California's electric grid, transportation sector, and environmental goals.