405 research outputs found
Potentials and Costs for Greenhouse Gas Mitigation in Annex I Countries: Methodology
This report documents the basic methodology of IIASA's GAINS model that has been used for comparing mitigation efforts across Annex I Parties.
Additional information is available at gains.iiasa.ac.at/Annex1.htm
GAINS: The impact of economic crisis on GHG mitigation potentials and costs in Annex I Countries
This report analyzes how GHG mitigation potentials and costs in the Annex I countries of the UNFCCC are influenced by the current economic crisis
A Tool for Comparing Countries’ Efforts to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
IIASA has developed an easy-to-use online calculator to help industrialized countries compare efforts to lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with those of other countries. The calculator is designed to explore alternative schemes for sharing the burden between countries, and it can help industrialized countries identify a mutually agreeable set of GHG emission reduction targets
Uncertainty in an Emissions Constrained World: Method Overview and Data Revision
The study by Jonas et al. (2014) has received interest, notably by the Austrian Climate Research Programme [ACRP], regarding the use of the results at national scales. Jonas et al. discuss diagnostic (retrospective: looking back in time) and prognostic (prospective: looking forward in time) uncertainty in an emissions-temperature-uncertainty framework that allows any country to understand its near-term mitigation and adaptation efforts in a globally consistent and long-term context which includes all countries and stipulates global warming to range between 2 and 4 °C. To achieve this understanding, the study established national linear emission target paths (e.g., from 1990 to 2050) that are globally consistent. In this systems context, cumulative emissions until 2050 are constrained and globally binding but are uncertain (i.e., they can be estimated only imprecisely); and whether or not compliance with an agreed temperature target in 2050 and beyond will be achieved is also uncertain. In a nutshell, the emissions-temperature-uncertainty framework can be used to monitor a country’s performance - past as well as prospective achievements - in complying with a future warming target in a quantified uncertainty-risk context.
Our working paper (i) recalls the background of the study by Jonas et al. in a condensed but comprehensive manner; and (ii) provides a detailed description of the study’s input and output data which have been updated in the meantime. The paper uses Austria as a case country, while placing it in a European and global context
GHG Mitigation Potentials from Energy Use and Industrial Sources in Annex I Countries: Methodology
This report documents the basic methodology of IIASA's GAINS model that has been used for comparing mitigation potentials for energy related and industrial emissions across Annex I Parties.
Additional information sources are available at gains.iiasa.ac.at/Annex1.htm
GHG Mitigation Potentials and Costs in the Transport Sector of Annex I Countries: Methodology, Version 2
This report documents the specific methodology of IIASA's GAINS model for emissions from transport activities that has been used for comparing mitigation efforts across Annex I Parties.
Additional information sources are available at gains.iiasa.ac.at/Annex1.htm
Carbon emissions evaluation for highway management and maintenance
Highway clients are increasingly concerned with the environmental consequences and sustainability implications of their highway maintenance service. This is because the service consumes a significant amount of natural resources, is financial and energy-intensive and is a large Greenhouse gas (GHG) emitter responsible for global warming and climate change. This has placed the highway maintenance sector, including its supply chain under increasing pressure to deliver well-maintained low-carbon maintenance service, whilst addressing its climate change impacts. The highway stakeholders increasing focus on carbon footprinting is a direct response to the legal obligation presented by the enactment of the UK s Climate Change Act (2008) and the Carbon Reduction Commitments. Investment decisions on highway infrastructure must now account for carbon and financial costs in a balanced manner. Highway clients now require their supply chains to demonstrate the capacity to reduce both direct and indirect carbon, and provide carbon footprint information relating to the work done or being tendered for. This is driving the sector to re-think its business operations within environmental, economic and social limits, which inherently presents risks and opportunities poorly understood by the stakeholders. It requires an in-depth understanding of the business operations, inputs and outputs. These business requirements are compounded given the lack of an agreed industrial methodology standard focusing on carbon footprinting, the knowledge and skill gaps, system boundary definitions, credible industrial data and their collection approach. The aim of this study is to develop a project-focused and process-based carbon footprinting methodology that includes a decision-support and carbon management tool to assist carbon management decision-making in highway maintenance planning and operation. This study then explored how the PAS2050 protocol can enhance the highway maintenance service delivery carbon footprinting and identify opportunities for reduction. It briefly reviews carbon emissions performance and the UK s highway maintenance sector, and developed a methodological framework that includes a carbon evaluation tool (the sponsor s business focus tool) based on the PAS2050 protocol. The framework developed is specific to highway maintenance planning and operation. It offers a carbon Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool that can identify emission hotspots across the process value chain, and inform a carbon reduction hierarchy. The implementation of the PAS2050-compliant methodology framework and the carbon evaluation tool for core highway maintenance processes (for example, pavement resurfacing, pavement marking, bulk lamp replacement and grass cutting), in addition to carbon footprinting across different site locations (urban, semi-urban and rural) are presented. The results indicate that materials production and their delivery to site (embodied carbon) are areas of carbon hotspots. This represents an important decision point for highway designers, managers and maintainers in order to deliver low-carbon service. These carbon hotspots suggest a less energy-intensive or green materials manufacturing process, responsible sourcing, use of recycled and secondary materials sourced locally (closer to sites) and delivered in bulk. The step-by-step carbon footprinting approach presented in this study is unique. It can be used by other sectors within the built environment as a pragmatic means of identifying and prioritising areas of potential carbon reduction through informed decision-making
Administrative penalties as a tool for resolving South Africa’s environmental compliance and enforcement woes
Includes bibliographical references.South Africa’s environmental resources are in serious decline, despite the constitutional environmental right, and multiple environmental protection laws. A predominant reason for this is that the criminal sanction is the default method of environmental enforcement. Even if prosecutors succeed in proving guilt beyond reasonable doubt, the fines imposed are too low to deter environmental violations. This dissertation proposes the introduction of an administrative penalty system into SA environmental law, as this system has had positive compliance impacts in numerous jurisdictions. Administrative penalties in the Netherlands and United Kingdom (the roots of SA’s civil and common law systems, respectively) are evaluated to identify best practices for administrative penalties. In SA’s environmental regime, there is an ‘administrative fine’ contained in section 24G of the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998. This is not a true administrative penalty, nor does it comply with the recommended best practices. Section 24G should either be deleted or substantially improved to meet its obligation of protecting the environment. Given the significant potential of administrative penalties to improve environmental compliance and enforcement, practical suggestions are made regarding their introduction into SA environmental law as a means to halt the current widespread non-compliance with environmental legislation
Challenges in Cybersecurity and Privacy - the European Research Landscape
Cybersecurity and Privacy issues are becoming an important barrier for a trusted and dependable global digital society development. Cyber-criminals are continuously shifting their cyber-attacks specially against cyber-physical systems and IoT, since they present additional vulnerabilities due to their constrained capabilities, their unattended nature and the usage of potential untrustworthiness components. Likewise, identity-theft, fraud, personal data leakages, and other related cyber-crimes are continuously evolving, causing important damages and privacy problems for European citizens in both virtual and physical scenarios. In this context, new holistic approaches, methodologies, techniques and tools are needed to cope with those issues, and mitigate cyberattacks, by employing novel cyber-situational awareness frameworks, risk analysis and modeling, threat intelligent systems, cyber-threat information sharing methods, advanced big-data analysis techniques as well as exploiting the benefits from latest technologies such as SDN/NFV and Cloud systems. In addition, novel privacy-preserving techniques, and crypto-privacy mechanisms, identity and eID management systems, trust services, and recommendations are needed to protect citizens’ privacy while keeping usability levels. The European Commission is addressing the challenge through different means, including the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program, thereby financing innovative projects that can cope with the increasing cyberthreat landscape. This book introduces several cybersecurity and privacy research challenges and how they are being addressed in the scope of 15 European research projects. Each chapter is dedicated to a different funded European Research project, which aims to cope with digital security and privacy aspects, risks, threats and cybersecurity issues from a different perspective. Each chapter includes the project’s overviews and objectives, the particular challenges they are covering, research achievements on security and privacy, as well as the techniques, outcomes, and evaluations accomplished in the scope of the EU project. The book is the result of a collaborative effort among relative ongoing European Research projects in the field of privacy and security as well as related cybersecurity fields, and it is intended to explain how these projects meet the main cybersecurity and privacy challenges faced in Europe. Namely, the EU projects analyzed in the book are: ANASTACIA, SAINT, YAKSHA, FORTIKA, CYBECO, SISSDEN, CIPSEC, CS-AWARE. RED-Alert, Truessec.eu. ARIES, LIGHTest, CREDENTIAL, FutureTrust, LEPS. Challenges in Cybersecurity and Privacy - the European Research Landscape is ideal for personnel in computer/communication industries as well as academic staff and master/research students in computer science and communications networks interested in learning about cyber-security and privacy aspects
Analysis of Large Scale PV Systems with Energy Storage to a Utility Grid
With electric distribution network operators experiencing an exponential increase in distributed energy resource connections to the power grid, operational challenges arise attributable to the traditional methods of building distribution feeders. Photovoltaic (PV) solar systems are the major contributor due to recent technological advancements. Though this renewable energy resource is beneficial to human society, unfavorable electrical conditions can arise from the inherit variability of solar energy. Extreme variability of power injection can force excessive operations of voltage regulation equipment and potentially degrade customer voltage quality. If managed and controlled properly, battery energy storage systems installed on a distribution feeder have the ability to compliment solar generation and dampen the negative effects of solar generation.
Now that customers are connecting their own generation, the traditional design assumption of load flowing from substation to customer is nullified. This research aims first to capture the maximum amount of generation that can be connected to a distribution feeder. Numerous deployments of generation scenarios are applied on six unique distribution feeders to conclude that hosting capacity is dependent on interconnect location. Then, existing controllers installed on voltage regulation equipment are modeled in detail. High resolution time series analysis driven from historical measurements is conducted on two contrasting feeders with specific PV generator deployments. With the proper modeling of on-load tap changer controls, excessive operations caused by extreme PV generation swings were captured.
Several services that battery energy storage systems can provide when connected to an individual distribution feeder with significant PV generation include long term absorption of excessive PV generation, dynamic response to extreme PV generation ramping, and release of stored energy for system peak shaving. A centralized master energy coordinator is proposed with the ability to dispatch the battery system in such a fashion to implement each service throughout consecutive days of operation. This solution was built by integrating load and solar energy forecasting predictions in order to construct an optimum charging and discharging schedule that would maximize the asset’s lifespan. Multiple load and solar generation scenarios including a consecutive three day run is included to verify the robustness of this energy coordinator
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