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Congratulations! It's a New Book...
Global Climate Change - The Technology Challenge


Published by Springer, this book which will be available approximately April 29, 2011. It was co-authored by our EPA Air scientists -- Frank Princiotta, Andy Miller, Bob Thompson, Brooke Hemming, Nick Hutson, and Gayle Hagler. In order to avoid the potentially catastrophic impacts of global warming, the current 3% CO2 global emission growth rate must be transformed to a 1 to 3% declining rate, as soon as possible. This will require a rapid and radical transformation of the world’s energy production and end use systems. The current generation of energy technologies are not capable of achieving the level of mitigation required. The Next Generations of renewable, low carbon generation and end use technologies will be needed.

This book quantifies the mitigation challenge. It then considers the status of key technologies needed to protect the planet from serious climate change impact. Current and emerging technologies are characterized for their mitigation potential, status of development and potential environmental impacts. Power generation, mobile sources, industrial and building sectors are evaluated in detail. The importance and unique challenges for rapidly developing countries, such as China and India are discussed. Current global research and development efforts for key technologies are discussed. It is concluded that it will be necessary to substantially upgrade and accelerate the current worldwide RDD&D effort on both emerging energy technologies and those enabling technologies needed to improve mitigation effectiveness and economics. It will also be necessary to carefully evaluate the potential environmental characteristics of next generation technologies to avoid unacceptable health and ecological impacts.

Table of Contents

It should be noted that EPA scientists, as part of their work, contribute to the advancement of science in many ways, through publication of research conducted at EPA and by contributing their knowledge and expertise through collaboration on scientific books and other publications. The strength and credibility of EPA science depends, in part, on the scientific reputations and stature of EPA scientists, which is gained in large part by individual EPA scientists publishing and presenting their research to their community of scientific peers. One of the most important and effective means of achieving this credibility is for EPA scientists to publish their work in independent (non-EPA) outlets such as peer reviewed journals, proceedings, and books. The research and writing is conducted on official time as part of the job, and the results are published in appropriate non-EPA outlets with a disclaimer that the author is not representing EPA policy but rather is presenting their scientific views on an issue. The justification for doing this on official time is that it is in the best interest of the Agency to support EPA scientists' efforts to publish in non-EPA peer reviewed outlets.

Federal Green Building Leadership Award
Bob Thompson

The U.S. Green Building Council is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2010 Federal Green Building Leadership Award – Bob Thompson with the Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Thompson leads EPA’s Indoor Environments Branch, the agency’s primary research and development group focused on green building-related research. In his more than 20 years with EPA, he has chaired EPA’s Green Building Research Plan, developed EPA’s Tools for Schools program to provide a healthier and better learning environment in our K-12 schools, chaired the LEED Environmental Quality Technical Advisory Group, and worked on several cross-agency green technical teams. He remains committed to developing and sharing information across government and with external partners to provide building occupants with healthy, high-performance environments that are ready to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Join us as Rick Fedrizzi, USGBC’s president, CEO and founding chair, presents Mr. Thompson with his award during the opening plenary of the Federal Summit on May 18 at 9 a.m.

IBM CityOne

CityOne is a serious game that has the potential to educate users about the complex interactions between energy, water and environmental protection.  More importantly the game has a way of keeping the user engaged in debating the benefits and complexities of energy, and water conservation.  The EPA has always taken on the challenge of educating the public on aging water infrastructure, distribution, wastewater, air pollution technologies, air contaminants and the challenges of producing more energy and water while reducing the harmful effects to humans and the environment.
IBM's CityOne has the potential to reach a large audience of energy and water users and the EPA is …

Over the last several years, energy consumption by the water and wastewater sector has considerably increased as a result of the implementation of new technologies and approaches to safeguard water quality and to meet new regulations.  Also, the price of energy has substantially increased in the same period.  Current treatment may not be sufficient to address emerging issues and potentially stronger regulatory requirements. It is imperative that optimization of energy use, more efficient equipment and treatment technologies, energy recovery, and even energy production must become a part of the services and activities being undertaken by drinking water and wastewater utilities.

The IBM CityOne game will draw awareness to EPA's research being conducted to provide information, methods, and tools that will enable states, utilities, and communities to make informed decisions on cost-effective and protective ways to control stormwater runoff and provide safe drinking water, to more effectively implement comprehensive asset management, provide reliable service to their customers, and meet their Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act requirements. The game will also draw awareness to EPA's programs, initiatives, tools, technologies, and assistance that have already been implemented and are available to the public.

The Presidential Early Career Award for  Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) Gayle Hagler

Gayle was nominated for the The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). In February 1996, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), was commissioned by President Clinton to create an award program that would honor and support the extraordinary achievements of young professionals at the outset of their independent research careers in the fields of science and technology. Winners get their picture placed in the Whitehouse.

Outstanding Reviewer (Top reviewer), Journal of Atmospheric Environment
Michael Hays

Michael Hays received the Outstanding Reviewer (Top reviewer) from the Journal of Atmospheric Environment for providing outstanding support and review to the process of science.

Frank Princiotta is a committee leader of Engineering Response to Climate Change: Adaptation, Mitigation, and Sustainability. This committee will be supporting the International Congress on Sustainable Science & Engineering (ICOSSE). The  Climate Change Workshop is scheduled for March 2011 Tucson, AZ.

Is it Better to Burn or Bury Waste for Clean Electricity Generation?
Susan Thorneloe & Ozge Kaplan

Susan Thorneloe & Ozge Kaplan are the featured researchers in the EPA Science Matters article, Is it Better to Burn or Bury Waste for Clean Electricity Generation?  EPA science matter states that "EPA researchers have completed the first scientific comparison of whether it is better to burn or bury waste".. 

Learn More
For complete details and results of the study, see the Environmental Science & Technology journal article, “Is It Better to Burn or Bury Waste for Clean Electricity Generation?”

Measuring Emissions From Alternative Fuels

Vehicles that use alternative fuels such as ethanol blend gasoline and biodiesel are the subject of ongoing research by air quality scientists in EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory. Emissions from these two most commonly available fuels are being examined for their potential impacts on environmental and human health.

Background

In the United States, automobiles and trucks contribute so widely and significantly to national criteria and air toxic emissions that virtually the entire population is exposed to some level of vehicle gaseous and aerosol pollutants. As a result, federal regulations, including the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act, require the use of alternative fuels and fuel additives to reduce U.S. dependency on foreign oil yet also meet stringent pollution emission standards. Responding to these requirements, EPA air quality specialists are gathering the data for emission inventories and models that enable the accurate assessment of potential risks posed by ethanol blend gasoline and biodiesel fuels.

Alternative Fuel Research

Alternative fuels for vehicles include any materials or substances other than petroleum. For economic and environmental reasons, many countries around the world have made alternative fuels a high priority. There is a wide variety to choose from, including biodiesel, bioalcohol (methanol, ethanol, butanol), hydrogen, non-fossil methane, non-fossil natural gas, vegetable oil and other biomass sources, batteries, fuel cells, and nuclear and solar power. Currently, about 40 million alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles have been sold worldwide; Brazil is the world leader with about 10 million vehicles. As a result, a Brazilian service station might offer as many as four alternative fuels for sale: biodiesel, gasohol, neat ethanol and compressed natural gas. In the United States, with about 9.3 million alternative fuel vehicles*, the two most commercially available fuels are ethanol-blend gasoline and biodiesel—the subjects of current EPA research projects.

Researchers identified four goals for the EPA alternative fuel research:

  1. Develop emission factors and improved emission models for light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles operating on conventional and alternative fuels, including ethanol-blend gasoline.
  2. Identify the impacts of changing ambient temperatures on motor vehicle emissions using conventional and alternative fuels.
  3. Generate profiles of the chemical compositions of these motor vehicle emissions for use in air quality and exposure models.
  4. Identify the compounds and characteristics of emissions from alternative fuels that are of concern from a health perspective and that may increase (or decrease) with the use of these fuels.

The development of emission factors and models from this research will be used to conduct regulatory air quality and climate assessments, and to assess how the use of alternative fuels will affect air pollution emissions, air quality, climate, and human and ecological health. Research results will also be used in the development of transportation and urban planning, while minimizing U.S. reliance on foreign oil supplies.

Although the EPA emissions study is currently evaluating only ethanol blend and biodiesel, the research team also has the ability to evaluate the impacts of other potentially viable alternative fuels in the future.

Contacts

Technical Contact: Dr. Richard Baldauf

Media Contact: Steve Doub, 513-569-7503

*Department of Energy, Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center

Solid-fuel cook stoves: gauging performance and emissions - Researchers have tested a number of household cook stove and fuel combinations for performance and pollutant emissions. Studies showed that burning solid fuels typically produces substantial greenhouse gases and toxic air pollutants, even in supposedly improved stove models. Listen to the podcast (MP3) (3:18 min, 3.01 MB)

Federal Green Building Leadership Award
The U.S. Green Building Council is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2010 Federal Green Building Leadership Award –Bob Thompson with the Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Thompson leads EPA’s Indoor Environments Branch, the agency’s primary research and development group focused on green building-related research. In his more than 20 years with EPA, he has chaired EPA’s Green Building Research Plan, developed EPA’s Tools for Schools program to provide a healthier and better learning environment in our K-12 schools, chaired the LEED Environmental Quality Technical Advisory Group, and worked on several cross-agency green technical teams. He remains committed to developing and sharing information across government and with external partners to provide building occupants with healthy, high-performance environments that are ready to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Join us as Rick Fedrizzi, USGBC’s president, CEO and founding chair, presents Mr. Thompson with his award during the opening plenary of the Federal Summit on May 18 at 9 a.m.

Manila visit
The mission of EPA's air research programs are to advance science and technology to support the Agency’s environmental protection goals for clean air by characterizing emissions, developing and evaluating technologies, and performing assessments of cost-effective multi-media environmental management approaches for a healthy and sustainable environment.

Highly trained and educated employees conduct cutting edge air research. The air program is currently using scientific principals to replicate and solve today's most challenging air pollution problems. Staff scientists come from various backgrounds to include but not limited to:

Currently EPA air staff are providing direct support to Agency’s regulatory and voluntary programs, developing and evaluating emissions and cost effective risk management options for sources including power plants, industrial/commercial processes, natural, on-and off-road vehicles, indoor materials and products.

Additionally air staff scientists develop and demonstrate air pollution prevention and control technologies for key industries, electric power plants, incinerators, indoor environments and sources of greenhouse gases.

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