Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Clean Energy Project Development For Low-Income Communities: Strengthening The Ecosystem For Delivering Solar Energy And Deep Efficiency Retrofits, Eric Hangen

Carsey School of Public Policy

Scaling clean energy in low-income communities through solar and deep efficiency retrofits presents financing challenges, but that is only part of the problem. Drawing on research conducted by the Carsey School’s Center for Impact Finance, this white paper outlines a road map depicting the ecosystem needed to deliver clean energy projects to underserved communities.

In a “tour” through this ecosystem, author Eric Hangen reviews examples of the work different organizations are doing in each of its niches, as well as which niches seem to be richly popu­lated and which niches need more support and invest­ment. Main conclusions from the tour …

The Health Effects Of Anthropogenic Pm2.5 Emissions, Andrew Charles Meyer

Honors Theses and Capstones

This study analyzes the health impacts of particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5), a common anthropogenic pollutant resulting from vehicles, manufacturing, and wood burning. PM2.5 is an emission of particular concern given its small size of roughly 2.5 micrometers, allowing it to stay in the atmosphere for up to 10 days and penetrate the deepest area of the lungs, the alveoli. This penetration can lead to adverse respiratory and cardiovascular health outcomes, and ultimately lead to an increased mortality rate. This study utilizes data from 1,885 counties in the U.S. between 2001 and 2017, and included health outcome, PM2.5 , and demographic …

Sustainability In The New England Ski Industry, Sydney E. Gendreau

Honors Theses and Capstones

The goal of this study is to explore the extent to which sustainable investments are worthwhile for the New England ski industry. Research has shown that the New England ski industry will be greatly impacted by the effects of climate change within the near future. Anthropogenic climate change over the next several decades will cause frequent low snow winters, increases in night time winter temperatures, and overall shorter winters. Detailed economic analysis has shown that low snow and warm winters result in roughly $54 million in lost revenue for the New Hampshire ski industry in the past (Burakowski, Magnusson, 2012). …

“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 …

Consumer Preferences Of Solar Systems In Boston And Atlanta: A Choice Experiment, Sam Mabile

Honors Theses and Capstones

Creating a cleaner energy grid has become a hot topic over the past 20 years, as the effects of fossil fuels on our planet has become clearer. The solar market in the US has exploded over the past 10 years, with an average annual growth rate of about 42% (Solar Industry Research Data, 2020). Choice experiments are often conducted to better understand consumers preferences towards products or characteristics of products. In this study, data of a choice experiment in a survey of residents in Boston and Atlanta regarding preferences for attributes of household solar energy collecting system are …

Eelgrass Health Survey And Results, Nicholas B. Anderson, Catherine M. Ashcraft, Dante D. Torio, Frederick T. Short

Natural Resources & the Environment

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire designed, tested, and conducted an eelgrass health survey. The primary goal of the survey was to collect health ratings from respondents who had viewed pre-selected images of eelgrass representing a wide range of health conditions. Survey results were used as a calibration and validation to a novel eelgrass health index developed using video-monitoring. Two secondary goals of this this survey were the identification of plant-specific and environmental characteristics important to respondents and the introduction of the new eelgrass health index. This published dataset includes de-identified survey respondent background and demographic data, the survey …

Generational Aspects Of U.S. Public Opinion On Renewable Energy And Climate Change, Lawrence C. Hamilton, Joel N. Hartter, Erin Bell

Sociology

The topics of climate change and renewable energy often are linked in policy discussions and scientific analysis, but public opinion on these topics exhibits both overlap and divergence. Although renewable energy has potentially broader acceptance than anthropogenic climate change, it can also sometimes face differently-based opposition. Analyses of U.S. and regional surveys, including time series of repeated surveys in New Hampshire (2010–2018) and northeast Oregon (2011–2018), explore the social bases of public views on both issues. Political divisions are prominent, although somewhat greater regarding climate change. Such divisions widen with education, an interaction effect documented in other studies as well. …

Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership 2018 Annual Report, Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

No abstract provided.

Data Snapshot: Millennials And Climate Change, Lawrence Hamilton

Carsey School of Public Policy

From more frequent flooding to heat waves and drought, adverse impacts from climate change are already being experienced.Scientists warn of worse impacts within the lifetime of many people alive today, if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced. Although majorities in all age groups recognize the reality of climate change, awareness is highest among young adults.

Using Contingent Valuation To Measure The Economic Impact Of Climate Change On Hiker Recreation During New England Peak Foliage, Marina J. Bowie

Honors Theses and Capstones

This paper seeks to define and develop an economic tool for measuring willingness to pay for hiking recreation in the face of climate change in New England during the peak foliage season. Potential climate change impacts to New England are defined, along with relevant economic tools for measuring the market value of non-marketed goods. Ultimately, contingent valuation is chosen as the most viable option, and a survey is developed, pretested, and ready for implementation at the trailhead of Mt. Major in New Hampshire.

Wine About It: How Climate Change Is Affecting International Wine Markets, Krysta Suzanne Gingue

Honors Theses and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to understand the social context surrounding wine and how consumers and producers will act within the existing market structures to physical changes to wine due to climate change. After defining the socially embedded structure of market values, this paper questions how they will survive with the visible and invisible changes being made to wines and wine regions. Through various case studies the paper uncovers climate events happening across the world and how they will potentially change the economic landscape of wine markets. The different lenses required to understand the market lead to competing conclusions. …

Eyes Off The Earth? Public Opinion Regarding Climate Science And Nasa, Lawrence C. Hamilton, Jessica Brunacini, Stephanie Pfirm

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this brief, authors Lawrence Hamilton, Jessica Brunacini, and Stephanie Pfirman report the results of two nationwide Polar, Environment, and Science surveys on climate change conducted in 2016, as well as a follow-up April 2017 Granite State Poll asking New Hampshire residents their thoughts on proposed cuts to the NASA program. Seventy-three percent of respondents in the nationwide survey said they trust science agencies such as NASA for information about climate change. The second-most-trusted source of information about climate change is family and friends. Despite political divisions, science agencies such as NASA are trusted by substantial majorities within every political …

Carsey Perspectives: New Hampshire's Electricity Future; Cost, Reliability, And Risk, Cameron P. Wake, Matt Magnusson, Christine Foreman, Fiona Wilson

Carsey School of Public Policy

May 2017 update

PointLogic Energy, a source for natural gas pipeline flow and capacity in the original report, has recently updated its models for calculating natural gas flow in the Tennessee Gas Pipeline in New England. This model update has resulted in significant changes to their previous estimates. Most importantly, data obtained from PointLogic Energy in December 2016 supported the finding that overall net gas flow in the “Tennessee Gas Pipeline: NY to MA” was from Massachusetts to New York from 2013–2016; their revised models indicate a net flow during the same period from New York to Massachusetts. To be …

Public Support For Environmental Protection, Lawrence C. Hamilton

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this fact sheet, author Lawrence Hamilton discusses the results of a New Hampshire poll conducted January 31 to February 8, 2017, that asked residents whether they think environmental protection rules should be reduced, strengthened, or left as they are. He reports that, although President Trump and some Congressional supporters have proposed broad reductions in environmental protection, the New Hampshire survey--which has a record of mirroring national surveys on environmental issues--finds little support for such steps. Almost three-quarters think instead that environmental protection rules should be left as they are or strengthened. Large majorities in every category of age, education, …

On Renewable Energy And Climate, Trump Voters Stand Apart, Lawrence C. Hamilton

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this brief, author Larry Hamilton discusses the results of pre- and post-election Polar, Environment, and Science surveys carried out by Carsey School researchers in August and November–December 2016, asking people about their general views on climate change and renewable energy. Almost three-fourths of Americans surveyed said that renewable energy should be a higher national priority than more drilling for oil. About two-thirds agree with the scientific consensus that humans are changing Earth’s climate. Priority for renewable energy development and recognition of human-caused climate change are majority opinions within every voter group except Trump supporters. On renewable energy, the reality …

Carsey Perspectives: To Dig, Or Not To Dig?, Tom W. Haines

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this Carsey Perspectives brief, author Tom Haines details the ongoing review of federal coal leasing and reflects on its implications for the country’s effort to meet carbon emissions targets in the face of climate change. Haines walked 50 miles across Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, the site of most federal coal production, and uses that on-the-ground research, as well as additional reporting, to form an analysis of the scope of the program and the role of federal coal going forward.

Where Is The North Pole? An Election-Year Survey On Global Change, Lawrence C. Hamilton

Carsey School of Public Policy

To explore public knowledge and perceptions about climate change, University of New Hampshire researchers conducted the first Polar, Environment, and Science (POLES) survey in August 2016. A random sample of U.S. adults were asked for their views regarding science, climate change, sources of information, current problems, and possible solutions. In addition, the survey tested basic geographical knowledge related to polar regions, such as whether the United States has a significant population living in the Arctic, and what respondents know about the location of the North Pole.

In this brief, author Lawrence Hamilton reports that fewer than one in five Americans …

Was December Warm? Family, Politics, And Recollections Of Weather, Lawrence C. Hamilton, Mary D. Lemcke-Stampone

Carsey School of Public Policy

In 2015 New Hampshire experienced its warmest December on record. The temperature exceeded twentieth century average temperatures by a wider margin than for any month in historical records dating back to 1895. In February 2016, as part of an ongoing study of environmental perceptions, the Granite State Poll asked state residents whether they thought the recent December had been generally colder, warmer, or about average for that month. Only 63 percent remembered it had been above average. The remainder of the winter set a new warmth record as well, so in April 2016 another Granite State Poll asked residents about …

Clean Water For Less Integrated Planning Reduces The Cost Of Meeting Water Quality Goals In New Hampshire, Alison W. Watts, Robert Roseen, Paul E. Stacey, Renee Bourdeau, Theresa Walker

Carsey School of Public Policy

Rising populations and increased development in New Hampshire coastal communities have led to a decline in water quality in the Great Bay Estuary. Responding effectively and affordably to new federal permit requirements for treating and discharging stormwater and wastewater will require innovative solutions from communities in the area. The Water Integration for Squamscott-Exeter (WISE) project developed an integrated planning framework through which the coastal communities of Exeter, Stratham, and Newfields could significantly reduce the cost of meeting permit requirements. In this brief, authors Alison Watts, Robert Roseen, Paul Stacey, Renee Bourdeau, and Theresa Walker report that integrated planning could save …

Natural Disasters, Foreign Aid And Economic Development, Valeriu Tomescu

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

The Greening Of Faith: God, The Environment, And The Good Life (20th Anniversary Edition), John E. Carroll, Paul Brockelman, Mary Westfall

University of New Hampshire Press: Open Access Books

The recent release of Pope Francis’s much-discussed encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home, has reinforced environmental issues as also moral and spiritual issues. This anthology, twenty years ahead of the encyclical but very much in line with its agenda, offers essays by fifteen philosophers, theologians, and environmentalists who argue for a response to ecology that recognizes the tools of science but includes a more spiritual approach—one with a more humanistic, holistic view based on inherent reverence toward the natural world. Writers whose orientations range from Buddhism to evangelical Christianity to Catholicism to Native American …

Trump And Sanders Supporters Differ Sharply On Key Scientific Fact, Lawrence C. Hamilton

Carsey School of Public Policy

In this fact sheet, author Lawrence C. Hamilton reports the results of a recent WMUR/CNN poll by the UNH Survey Center asking more than 700 New Hampshire residents whether they would vote for Donald Trump or Bernie Sanders if the 2016 presidential election was being held on that day, and how candidate preferences matched up with people's beliefs about a basic scientific fact -- the rising con­centration of CO2 or carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere.

Do Footprint-Based Cafe Standards Make Car Models Bigger?, Brianna Marie Jean

Economics

Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards have historically been set equal across all manufacturer fleets of the same type. Concerns about varying costs across firms and safety implications of standards that are set homogeneously across firms and models resulted in a policy shift towards footprint-based standards. Under this type of standard, individual car models face targets based on the size of the area between the wheelbase and wheel track, so that larger models face less stringent standards, and manufacturers who make, on average, larger cars will face a lighter fleet standard. Theoretical models have shown that this type of policy …

Life Cycle Assessment (Lca) Of Tourism Activities, Kayla Santello

Honors Theses and Capstones

Abstract— Tourism, like other developed industries is a commerce that requires energy inputs and yields outputs with significant effects on the environment. However a comprehensive study examining the life cycle impact associated with each tourism component including transportation, accommodation, food services, and recreation is still lacking. Therefore a search of previous tourism life cycle studies was carried out and ten studies were further investigated. Indicators, assessment approaches, and system boundaries of these previous studies were assessed. Then the outcomes were normalized and compared in order to obtain ranges for the four components of tourism. It was found that energy intensity …

A New Approach To Climate Change: A Consideration Of Ancillary Benefits In Linking Regional Permit Trading Systems, William H. Meyer

Honors Theses and Capstones

In this paper, I investigate the economic efficiency of two major approaches to greenhouse gas reduction, and evaluate their respective benefits. First, I trace the path of action and thinking on addressing climate change from a global to a regional level. Second, I consider the major economic benefits of having a globally-integrated greenhouse gas abatement system. Third, I consider the economic benefits of regional approaches to climate change, with a focus on the ancillary benefits from greenhouse gas abatement. I conclude by reviewing the challenges to linking regional abatement systems into a cohesive network, and suggest a potential future approach …

Book Review, Christine M. Wilkes

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

Review of: SHELDON KRIMSKY & ALONZO PLOUGH, ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS: COMMUNICATING Risks AS A SOCIAL PROCESS. (Auburn House 1988) [333 pp.] Acknowledgements, bibliographies, case chronologies, figures, foreword, glossaries of acronyms, index, notes. LC: 88-14467; ISBN: 0-8659-187-8. [$18,95 paper. 88 Post Road West, Westport CT 06881.]

Toxics Use Reduction: Pro And Con, Francine Laden, George M. Gray

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

With the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Act as an example, important issues related to the goals and effectiveness of TUR are examined. The benefits as claimed by proponents are contrasted with shortcomings outlined by opponents in point-counterpoint style. Ultimately, the authors call for more balanced analysis.