Envi second half of year

Leadership

the process why which a person influences others to help attain group or organizational goals

Greta Thunberg is a leader because…

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* Asperger’s syndrome
* Merged into autism, difficult with social interactions, intense focus with narrow subject (super power)
* Bluntness
* Focus
* tenacity/ doggedness
* Took advantage of circumstances - loss of hope in trump election and natural disasters

Arbor Hill incinerator fight

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* Black community
* Plant starts in 1981, burns 350 tons of garbage per day
* Switched from all natural gas
* Heat for government building in downtown
* Children suffer from asthma

Aaron Mair

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* Policy entrepreneur
* From binghamton university
* Moved to Arbor hill in 1984
* Daughters have respiratory issues
* Presents to Sierra Club - failed
* Joined Sierra Club - organized around the incinerator
* Transformed sierra club
* “A Deeper Shade of Green”
* Native american land, jobs for BIPOC auto workers, Clean Hudson

Policy Entrepreneurs

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* Problem definition
* Institutional position
* Resource availability
* Opinion context
* Interest groups
* Individual motives

Policy Window - some opportunity for change

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* Pollution everywhere
* Decline in popularity of trash to energy incinerators
* Rise of environmentalism
* Rise of environmental justice

Sustainability leader Big 3

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* Sustainability mindset
* Systems thinking
* Relationship building

Sustainability Mindset

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* Thinking in terms of the three E
* Long-term orientation
* Integrity
* Open-mindedness
* Transparency 
* Broad concept of stakeholders

Systems thinking

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* See big picture
* Appreciating details
* Balanced decision making (local and global … build support)
* Simplicity, eliminating complexity

Relationship building

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* Understanding different cultures
* Embracing diversity
* Networking
* Facilitating meaningful dialog
* Empowering stakeholders
* Measuring improvements

Energy

the ability to do work and cause change

Two main energy concerns for environmental studies

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* Efficacy of transformation from potential to kinetic
* Source of energy

Where does most energy come from

fossil fuels

How much overall energy is wasted

⅔

Important economics

* **Richer places use more energy**
* **Drop in renewable prices** bc improvements in technology
* __Nuclear growth costs__: construction (very complex), waste management
* __Drop in gas prices__ -> fracking makes it plentiful

BTU

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* British Thermal Unit
* Increasing one degree?
* One quad of energy = one quadrillion BTUs = 293 billion kWh

How much power something needs to work

A 100-watt bulb requires 100 watts of electricity to glow

What is a KW vs KWH

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* KW: how much power something needs to work
* kWh: the flow of power into things

Two categories of energy

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* Potential energy
* Kinetic energy

Potential energy

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* **stored energy** 
* Gravitational energy
* Nuclear energy
* Elastic energy
* Chemical energy

Kinetic energy

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* **motion energy** (wind, waves, electrons)
* Mechanical energy
* Thermal energy
* Electrical energy
* Light energy
* Sound energy

Energy Efficiency

how well a system uses its energy input

Law of conservation of energy

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* Energy is not created or destroyed
* It is transformed

Energy transformations

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* Electrical to thermal
* Radiant (sun) to chemical (trees)
* Chemical (food or gas) to motion
* (image)

Transforming electrical energy examples

* __Hairdryer__: electrical energy -> mechanical, thermal, and sound energy
* __Blender__: electrical energy -> mechanical energy and sound energy

Gasoline powered vehicle (energy use)

* Around **80% of energy lost** due to various inefficiencies
* **68 - 72%** engine losses due to **HEAT**
* 4 - 6% parasitic losses
* 3 - 5% drivetrain losses
* 0 - 2% auxiliary electricity use
* **16 - 25%** of original energy **goes to wheels**

Parasitic

pumps, fans, and other **equipment to keep engine cool (4 - 6%)**

EV energy losses

* Around **11% of energy lost**
* **18% drivetrain** losses
* 10% charging loss
* 3% powertrain cooling and steering
* 0 - 4% auxiliary electricity use
* **87 - 91%** of original energy **goes to wheels**
* **22% regenerated** by **breaking** and back to battery

Most of our energy comes from non-renewable energy sources like…

* __Petroleum__: **36%,** transportation, manufacturing, electricity
* __Natural gas__: **32.3%**, heating, manufacturing, electricity, transportation
* __Coal__: 10.8%, electricity, manufacturing
* Lackawanna Coal Mine tour - one our south of binghamton
* __Nuclear (from uranium)__: 8.4, electricity

About **12 - 13%** of energy comes from renewable resources (kinds and percents)

* __Biomass__: **5%**, heating, electricity, transportation
* __Wind__: **3.4%,** electricity
* __Hydropower__: 2.3%, electricity
* __Solar__: 1.5, heating, electricity
* __Geothermal__: 0.2, heating, electricity

Energy losses during conversion and transmission

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* Conventional centralized generation systems **waste more than ⅔ of their original energy output**
* Lost through **inefficient generation** technologies and **heat wastage**
* Lost through **transmission and distribution**
* Wasted through **inefficient use**
* **Transportation is the second biggest and most wasteful sector**

Solutions for energy problems

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* Increased efficiency
* Increase renewables

Floating solar panels advantages and disadvantages

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* __Advantages__
* Generate power
* Keep cooler
* Prevent evaporation
* Shade reduces algae
* Reservoirs near cities and grid
* __Disadvantages__
* More expensive
* Extra cleaning
* Impacts on marine life

What is electricity

**electron flow;** electricity is created as **electrons** collide and **transfer from atom to atom**

Conductors and insulators

Electricity flows along conductors (metals)

Current

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* the **flow of electric charge**
* Measured in **AMPERES (A)**
* When faucet switch is on, electricity flows

Voltage

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* the **force (pressure) that causes current to flow**
* Measured in **VOLTS (V)**
* The battery provides voltage that will push current through the bulb when the switch is on

Electricity generation, transmission, and distribution

* Power plant **generates electricity**
* **Transformer steps up voltage for transmission**
* Transmission lines **carry electricity long distances**
* **Neighborhood transformer steps down voltage**
* **Distribution lines** carry electricity **to houses**
* Transformers on poles **step down electricity before** it enters **houses**

Edison’s Pearl Street Power Station

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* First commercial power plant in nation, NYC
* Open in 1882 serving 400 customers in lower manhattan

Alternating current vs Direct current function

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* __Direct current__: does not fluctuate
* __Alternating current__: changes voltage and current over time in cycles

AC vs DC Thomas Edison vs George Westinghouse

* **Edison - DC // Westinghouse - AC**
*  In Nov. 1887, dentist Alfred Southwick asked Edison to support the **use of electricity to execute criminals.** 
* Edison didn’t believe in capital punishment but saw potential to hurt Westinghouse…
* Edison lobbied and succeeded in having **first electric chair use AC**
* **Edison hired people to stoke fears about AC electricity** **by electrocuting** of dogs, horses, calves

AC superiority over DC

* DC could operate only a few **appliances; AC many**
* **AC less expensive** and could **run on larger, more distant power supplies**
* With adoption of AC at Chicago World’s Fair in 1893 and at the New York Niagra Falls power station in 1895, **AC completed its takeover**

Generating electricity

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* If a magnet moves through a coil of wire, a current is induced in the wire
* A generator uses motion in a magnetic field to produce an electric current

Electrifying everything because

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* Increasing clean/ renewable power
* Electricity is more effective energy source

Smart grid model vs dumb grid energy transmission model

Smart grid model has much more communication flow pathways rather than a straight line

Distributed energy resources (makes balancing complicated)

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* __Home solar panels__
* __Micro-generation__
* Micro turbines
* Fuel cells
* __Energy storage__
* Ice energy storage for AC
* Hydrostorage
* Rechargeable batteries
* __Plug in Electric Hybrids (PHEVs)__
* Vehicle-to-grid = source for on-peak supply and energy storage

Energy consumption patterns

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* More energy used in summer
* Varies by season, year, and region

What happens when the sun doesn't shine or the wind doesn't blow

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* Always doing something somewhere
* New technologies
* Storage

Average annual electricity consumption by type of home and census region

**South** region uses much **more energy,** **northeast** usually uses the **least** amount of energy

Residential electricity consumption

* Most energy goes towards air conditioning, space heating, water heating lighting, miscellaneous
* Most homes with central air conditioning are built 2000 or later
* **Older houses (1980 and 1990) use more energy** than newer houses (2001 and 2015)

Why electrify everything

* **Electricity** can eventually be **zero emission**, combustion cannot
* Electricity is more **cost effective**
* **Cleaner indoor air** when not using natural gas
* **Natural gas**, while burning is better than coal, **leaks** are huge
* Allow onsite production through renewables
* Electricity is a **more efficient power source** for many things
* (storage is always the issue, but we are tackling that)

Creative ways to store power?

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* Water flows back up to reservoir when in low demand so it can flow back down to generate power when in high demand
* Salt gets heated up, powers electric turbine, and then once cold it is reused to go through the same process

Ground source heat pumps

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* **Make use of stable temp from 12 - 40 ft down**
* Depends upon ground material
* Temp 50 - 60 degrees F
* Heat exchanger can use compression to absorb the heat from the ground and bring it up to a comfortable living temperature (or cool it down)

Urban Heat island effect (downtown)

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* Heat from vehicles, road surface, building surfaces
* Temp goes down when there water or trees

Why do we care about the US census

* **Understanding communities** next to natural areas
* Huge **data set on the human part of the human-natural interactions** that environmental scientists study

Facts learned from census

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* **Population** in natural disaster areas
* **hispanic /latino and black americans** are more likely to be alarmed or **concerned about global warming** than whites
* **environmental -health disparities**

Decennial US census

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* **Complete count**
* **Required** by US constitution every 10 years
* __People, households, age, sex, race, etc__
* **No economic data**
* To every census block

American community survey

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* Ongoing sample (ab 3,500,00 housing units per year)
* Total in HUs in US: 142,153,010 (1 in 40)
* **Reported annually** for large areas
* Reported as 5 years averages for all areas
* __Includes income, family status, education status, disability, job location and how get there, home style, status, cost__

Origin of the Census

* 1880 Census took **8 years to tabulate**
* **Herman Hollerith**, inspired by conductors punching tickets, developed a **tabulation machine**
* Used electro-mechanical relays to reach punch cards
* **Reduced tabulation of 1890 census to six years**, despite growth in population
* Used by US and other countries
* In **1911 Hollerith’s firm, the Tabulating Machine Company, and two others were merged into the Computer- Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR**) which would become **IBM in edicott New York**

1790 US Census

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* **Number of free white males**
* Number of free white males under the age of 16
* Number of free white **females**
* All other free persons
* **Number of slaves**

Census Tract

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* **Relatively permanent**
* 1,200 to 8,000 people with **optimum size of 4,000** **people** (__physical size varies widely__) 
* May follow local gov boundaries, definitely follow county boundaries

Block Groups

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* Defined to contain **600 to 3000 people**
* **210,000 block groups** in the US
* Smallest size publishing sample data (ACS)

Census Block

* **Smallest unit**
* **Bounded by visible feature**s and property lines, city borders, wtc
* Publicly release only decennial census data
* **8.2 million blocks** in US

American Community Survey (ACS) pathway

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* **1 in 38 household** receive invitation to participate in survey
* Can respond via **paper or online**
* Those who **don't complete the survey will get a call or a personal visit from staff**
* Information delivered to US Census Bureau

Census data and where to find it

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* Census.gov website or Social Explorer
* CPS food security
* Veteran employment
* Business dynamics

American Community Survey questions

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* ethnicity/race
* Building you live in
* The appliances the building you live in comes with
* Benefits from food stamps
* Level of education

Most Common types of cars

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* Conventional internal combustion engines (ICE)
* Conventional hybrids (HEV)
* Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV)
* Tesla
* Chevy bolt
* Hyundai Ioniq
* Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV)

Best Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) today

* __Midrange__: BMW i3, Nissan Leaf 2nd Gen
* __Long range__: Tesla model X (SUV), Tesla model 3 Long Range

PHEV

* Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles
* Chevy volt
* Honda clarity PHEV
* Toyota prius prime
* __Advantages__: many choices of vehicles, long driving range, **versatile fuel source**
* __Disadvantages__: **more maintenance** (2 engines and 2 fuels), **relies on gasoline** to power internal combustion engine

“Regular” hybrid

* **Relies on gasoline** to power internal combustion engine
* **Drive using electric motor at low speeds** and while cruising
* Electric motor **increases fuel efficiency and decreases emissions**
* **Battery automatically recharges** **while driving**

1967 Federal Air Quality Act

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* Allows **California to set more stringent air quality standard** than federal rules
* Due to **geography, weather patterns, and population growth**
* States have option to follow suit

California

moves to **accelerate to 100% new zero emission vehicles** sales by 2035

Changing forecasts (things) in the EV market

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* Each time BCG does an estimate, **EV sale prediction rises**
* **Inflation reduction act will likely increase adoption**. **More chargers** will reduce people’s anxiety range
* **Faster charging still needed**

Inflation reduction act requirements and impacts

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* Requires that **EV has to be built in US to get a tax credit**
* Could **reduce** the number of **cars available**
* Likely will increase adoption

Are EVs good for equity?

* **Price** of EV cars
* **Distribution** of EV **chargers**

Maintenance costs of electric vehicles

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* Usually **less maintenance** than conventional vehicles
* Fewer fluids (like engine oil) - **so less maintenance w fluids**
* **Brake wear is significantly reduced** due to regenerative braking
* **Less moving parts**

Lower maintenance of EVs

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* No oil changes
* No spark plugs
* No smog checks
* No timing belts
* Long lasting breaks
* Up to 35% decreased cost over time

Average miles traveled for $100 conventional vehicle vs EV in NY

* __Conventional__: 939
* __EV__: 2,222.2

Why are different vehicle types more popular in specific regions of US

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* **Mix of electricity sources**
* Mix of **highway v local driving**
* ICE vehicles do better on highway, reverse for EV
* Doesn't matter in most places, but in a few ICE vehicles pollute less

Overall why are EV better?

* **Electricity is a more efficient energy source**
* Electric cars are **cheaper to drive and cheaper to maintain**
* **Market is increasing** and **dropping costs** may eliminate part of **equity issue**

Environmental Justice

a social movement for the equitable distribution of environmental benefits and challenges

1982 - Warren County, NC

* A rural, low income, predominantly **black community**
* Choses by state lawmakers to **host a toxic waste landfill - PCBs**
* This protest **put environmental racism on the map**

Findings of black communities and toxic waste in 1982 (less info)

* **Blacks are majority of population in 3 of 4 communities** around toxic waste landfills
* **In all** four communities the **poverty rate exceeded 26%**

Toxic waste and race in the US

* 1987 by united church of christ
* **Race is most significant factor** associated w **location of hazardous waste facilities**
* **Communities two or more facilities had three times the population of black people** than those without

First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit in 1991

**Attended** by more than 650 grassroots organizations and more than 300 environmental groups

President Bill Clinton issues Executive order in 12898 in 1994

* “Federal actions to **address environmental justice in minority populations** and low-income populations”
* **Goal of achieving environmental protection in all communities**
* **federal attention** of environmental and human health effects **on minority and low income populations**

Energy justice components

* __Advance energy democracy__: communities should have a say in shaping their energy future
* __Alleviate energy insecurity:__ hardships on households meeting basic needs
* __Reduce energy burden__: energy price should be based on household income
* __Alleviate energy poverty__: lack of access to energy

Energy democracy - Community ownership and decision making

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* Many forms of community ownership
* Many kinds of technologies (wind, solar, hydro…)
* __Boston__: **churches** install **solar panels for community** and church
* __Puerto Rico__: **solar** and storage to **power hospitals after hurricane maria**
* __Michigan__: **rural landowners install wind turbines** on their land and **sell the power to local utilities and businesses**
* __Stamford CT__: created **local energy improvement districts** to coordinate and finance the **development of distributed and renewable energy systems**
* Municipal utilities

Definition of energy expenditure

Total spending on heating, cooling, and other **home energy**/ **total household income**

What is an appropriate energy burden?

Generally accepted is 6%

Drehol and Ross (2016)

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* Low income households pay 7.2% on average for energy
* All households 3.5%

Pereira (2016)

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* Trying to define energy burden
* 4 - 7% energy stressed
* 7 - 10% energy burdened
* More than 10% is energy impoverished

High energy burden cities

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* Birmingham
* Detroit
* Riverside
* Rochester

Health impacts of energy insecurity

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* Carbon monoxide poisoning
* Mental stress
* Uncomfortable temperatures -> sickness
* Unsafe heaters
* Trade off food, mental care, and rent

Low income households energy characteristics

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* **Lower expenditures**, but **higher costs** and **larger percent of income spent on energy**
* Older and **less efficient appliances**
* Less likely to have a programmable/controllable thermostat - **less control over thermostat**
* Older electric water heaters

Barriers of solar for low-income households

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* Can't access bc of price
* Access to capital and lower credit ratings
* Landlord/tenant split incentive
* Lack of info and english proficiency
* Housing conditions (roof life)

What is community solar and who owns the panels

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* Participants **pay for share** of solar farm, **electricity is distributed** through the grid
* Owned by utility, private company, or cooperative

Community shared solar

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* Now York Energy Democracy Alliance (EDA)
* Member-based network of community organizations and local energy practitioners
* Working to advance locally controlled, community based shared renewable energy products

Why community owned? (energy)

* **Benefits** of corporate owned **go to shareholders**
* Corporate and state goals do not push broader benefits
* Community owned energy projects **create more local jobs, economic benefit**
* Just transition to an **affordable** and **climate friendly energy system**

What is a lack of access to energy

* Minimum level of electricity
* Access to safe cooking fuels
* Enough to have economic activity
* Access to electrified public services
* **100% of US has access** to electricity by these definitions