Energy Management for a Sustainable Climate & Society

Question 1

Environmental Sustainability (Definition)

Answer 1

Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.

Question 2

Environmental Sustainability is challenged by two threats

Answer 2

1-Resource scarcity: Energy and material inputs, or their future substitutes, should endure indefinitely, without decreasing the service they provide.
2-Waste toxicity (pollution): Energy and material wastes must be benign to the receiving environment, or recycled, or captured and safely stored.

Question 3

Environmental sustainability concerns: resource scarcity & environmental toxicity. (Describe Table)

Answer 3

Resource -> Economy -> Waste

Resource: energy and material.
Economy: energy and material transformation.
Waste: energy and material

Question 4

Options for addressing local environmental threats

Answer 4

• Government bans the activity.
• The government regulates the activity with safety requirements that reduce the likelihood of environmentally harmful events.
• Government and industry invest in improved responses and clean up after environmentally harmful events.
• Government requires industry to restore environment to near-original conditions after harmful events and/or after termination of the resources development project.

Question 5

Options for reducing atmospheric consternations of GHGs

Answer 5

• Energy efficiency
  -Fuel switching to renewables.
  -Carbon capture and storage when using fossil fuels
  Policies -> Actions

Question 6

Policies -> Actions

Answer 6

These actions only happen with polices that process emissions or regulate the technologies and fuel that cause emissions.

Question 7

Natural Capital (Definition)

Answer 7

The ability of the environment to provide humans with resource inputs and waste assimilative capacity.

Question 8

Human- produced capital (Definition)

Answer 8

Human produce inputs ( building, equipment, infrastructure) and waste treatment capacity (recycling, waste treatment, etc).

Question 9

Weak Sustainability (Definition)

Answer 9

The sum of natural capital and human-produced capital does not decline.

Question 10

Strong Sustainability (Definition)

Answer 10

Natural Capital does not decline. (Does not allow for substitution of humans and natural capital.

Question 11

Natural Source to electricity

Answer 11

-Generation
-Transmission
(Substation)
-Distribution

Question 12

Capacity (Definition)

Answer 12

Maximum power output

Question 13

Three types of capacity measures

Answer 13

-Nameplate generation capacity (ideal conditions).
-Net summer generation capacity.
-Net winter generation capacity.

Question 14

Capacity factor (Definition)

Answer 14

Ratio of actual electric output in a given time period to the theoretical maximum output if the plant ran nonstop.