No Easy Answers For Affordable Renewable Energy

Dramatic progress in renewable energy technology is needed if the United States desires to produce 25 percent of its electricity and motor vehicle fuel from renewable sources by 2025 without significantly increasing consumer costs, according to a RAND Corporation study issued today.

Produced by the RAND Environment, Energy and Economic Development program, the study provides a "snapshot" of the nation’s potential energy expenditures if a requirement was imposed that 25 percent of electricity and motor vehicle fuels used in the United States by 2025 would come from renewable resources (a goal activists have described as "25 x ‘25").

The study finds that biomass resources and wind power have the greatest potential to contribute toward reaching the 25 x ‘25 goal.

The study replaces a report withdrawn by RAND in 2006 because of errors RAND identified in the computer model and numerical assumptions on which the findings were based. The new report finds that meeting the 25 x ‘25 goals would be more challenging than outlined in the earlier version of the report. RAND is a nonprofit research organization.

The Energy Future Coalition, a nonprofit environmental organization, asked RAND to assess the economic and other impacts of meeting the 25 x ‘25 goal. The RAND study considered technological and economic factors that would affect the costs of renewable energy as well as non-renewable fossil fuels.

The report comes as sharply higher prices for oil, concerns about energy security and growing worries about global warming have increased interest in expanding renewable energy in the United States. Substituting renewable energy for fossil fuels would reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the most prevalent greenhouse gas associated with global warming.

Currently, renewable energy provides 9.5 percent of total U.S. electricity supply, mostly hydroelectric power, and 1.6 percent of motor vehicle fuel.

"Expanding the use of renewable fuels will lower the long-term price of crude oil and reduce carbon dioxide emissions that are contributing to global warming," said lead author Michael Toman, director of the RAND Environment, Energy and Economic Development program. "However, to reap these benefits will require a major investment in improving and increasing the use of renewable energy technology."

Wind power, solar power, hydropower, and the burning of agricultural waste are all examples of renewable energy sources that can be used to produce electricity. Biomass resources like stalks from food crops, wood material and grasses also can be turned into ethanol or gasoline that can power motor vehicles.

The study finds, however, that a large, inexpensive and easily converted biomass supply is essential if it is to be used as a renewable resource and still have a limited impact on consumers’ wallets. Developing such a supply would require harvesting energy crops at a scale that greatly exceeds current production.

"Without increased biomass availability, expanded renewable energy use could impose economic burdens and result in environmental setbacks due to land conversion," Toman said.

While the 25 x ‘25 goal would significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions, Toman said a broader package of policy options that includes, but does not rely solely upon, increased use of renewable energy could produce equal benefits with less cost.

Among the study’s other key findings:

• Renewable energy technology will have to improve at the very significant pace envisioned by some renewable energy supporters in order to enjoy low-cost impacts.

• Significant increases in the use of wind power are possible, but only with substantial technical advances to facilitate greater use of less-productive locations.
• More moderate renewable energy targets ? such as 15 or 20 percent ? reduce expenditure impacts more than proportionately, though carbon dioxide reductions also are less significant.
• The federal government’s policy approach to pricing of renewable motor fuels will significantly affect fuel demand and society’s total energy expenditures.

“In particular, passing the cost of more-expensive renewable fuels to gas pump prices will result in improved energy efficiency, though it will cost consumers more,” Toman said. “Subsidizing more-expensive fuels will save people money at the pump, but only because the expense is shifted to the federal budget.”

The study does not address the transition and adjustment costs associated with initiating such a significant shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy technologies.

[Lisa Sodders @ RAND Corporation]

• When Technology Fails: A Manual for Self-Reliance & Pla
• Outback Wind Power Inverter 48V 3600W GRID-TIE GVFX3648
• MOTOROLA V323i Used Silver/Dark Grey USCellular
• Motorola V551 Bluetooth Camera Phone Blue Silver AT&T
• MOTOROLA E815 BLUETOOTH CAMERA PHONE Used Dark Grey All
• SAMSUNG SYNC SGH-A707 MP3 CELL PHONE Used Dark Grey A
• Aliph Jawbone Prime Bluetooth Noise Assassin
• Samsung GHA227 Cell Phone Great Dark Grey AT&T
• MOTOROLA NEXTEL I335 PTT PHONE Used Black Nextel
• Samsung SCH-R500 Hue Camera Phone Used Red Alltel
• NOKIA 6126 BLUETOOTH CAMERA PHONE Used Silver/Black AT&
• Motorola V197 Quad Band Cell Phone Used Silver/Dark Gre
• LG CG225 Used Black AT&T
• LG AX4270 Cell Phone Used Black Alltel
• BLACKBERRY 8830 WORLD PHONE Used Silver VERIZON
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Heavily Used Silver
• Nokia 1208B Cell Phone Used Dark Grey T-Mobile
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Black AT&T
• BLACKBERRY CURVE 8310 PDA QWERTY PHONE Used Dark Grey
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Used Silver AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver/Black AT&T
• Nokia 3120B Cell Phone Used White/Silver AT&T
• MOTOROLA E815 BLUETOOTH CAMERA PHONE Used Dark Grey VER
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Dark Grey/Black AT&T
• Motorola RAZR V3M Cell Phone Mint Dark Grey Sprint CDMA
• Samsung A640 Cell Phone Used Black SPRINT
• NOKIA 6102 6102B GSM PHONE Used Silver/Black AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Black AT&T
• SAMSUNG SGH-A437 CELL PHONE Used Dark Grey AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver/Dark Grey AT&T
• LG VX9900 enV CAMERA CELL PHONE Used Silver VERIZON
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Silver AT&T
• Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Heavily Used Blue A
• HTC TILT 8925 GSM 3G PhONE Used Black AT&T
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Used Blue AT&T
• MOTOROLA V325I GPS PHONE Used Silver/Dark Grey VERIZON
• MOTOROLA I570 RUGGED PTT PHONE Used Dark Grey Nextel
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver AT&T
• MOTOROLA RAZR V3M CELL PHONE Used Silver VERIZON
• NOKIA 6102 6102i CAMERA PHONE Used Silver/Black AT&T
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Silver T-Mobile
• Aliph Jawbone Prime Bluetooth Noise Assassin
• Samsung X507 GSM Cell Phone Used Blue/Dark Grey AT&T
• BlueAnt Bluetooth Q1 Mint In Box With Accessories
• Samsung SCH-R500 Hue Camera Phone Used Red Alltel
• MOTOROLA I570 RUGGED PTT PHONE Used Dark Grey Nextel
• HTC 8525 PDA SMARTPHONE QWERTY 3G Mint Dark Grey AT&T
• HTC TILT 8925 GSM 3G PhONE Used Black AT&T
• Nokia 3120B Cell Phone Used White/Silver AT&T
• Motorola W177 GSM Radio Phone Used Dark Grey/Black Unlo
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Dark Grey/Black T-Mobile
• BlackBerry 7230 Used Blue T-Mobile
• MOTOROLA W315 CDMA FLIP PHONE Used Blue VERIZON
• NOKIA 6085H GSM CELL PHONE Used Black AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Black AT&T
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Used Blue AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver/Dark Grey AT&T
• SONY ERICSSON Z500 CAMERA CELL PHONE Used Silver AT&T
• Nokia 3120B Cell Phone Used White/Silver AT&T
• Sony Ericsson Z525a PTT Cell Phone Used Blue/Silver AT&
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver/Black AT&T
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver AT&T
• MOTOROLA RAZR V3 CAMERA Used Black AT&T
• MOTOROLA i760 iDEN PTT PHONE Used Blue/Silver Nextel
• MOTOROLA NEXTEL I335 PTT PHONE Used Black Nextel
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Heavily Used Blue A
• MOTOROLA C168i GSM PHONE Used Silver/Black AT&T
• BLACKBERRY 8830 WORLD PHONE Used Silver VERIZON
• BlueAnt Bluetooth Q1 Mint In Box With Accessories
• Aliph Jawbone Prime Bluetooth for AT&T Noise Assassin
• Nokia 2600 Used Black AT&T
• HTC 8525 PDA SMARTPHONE QWERTY 3G Used Dark Grey AT&T
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Black AT&T
• MOTOROLA RAZR V3 CAMERA Used Pink AT&T
• RIM BLACKBERRY 8700C PDA CELL PHONE Used Blue AT&T
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Silver T-Mobile
• Kyocera KX9D Cell Phone New White/Black VIRGIN MOBILE B
• PALM TREO 750 MOBILE PDA Used Blue AT&T
• BLACKBERRY 7290 SMARTPHONE PDA Used Black AT&T
• MOTOROLA E815 BLUETOOTH CAMERA PHONE Used Dark Grey VER
• Aliph Jawbone Prime Bluetooth for AT&T Noise Assassin
• LG VX3200 Color Cell Phone Used Blue/Silver VERIZON
• NOKIA 6102 6102i CAMERA PHONE Used Silver/Black AT&T
• NOKIA 6085H GSM CELL PHONE Used Black AT&T
• BLACKBERRY 7100I PDA Used Silver Nextel
• LG VX5400 CAMERA PHONE Used Dark Grey VERIZON
• BLACKBERRY CURVE 8310 PDA QWERTY PHONE Used Dark Grey
• Nokia 2610 Cell Phone Used Silver/Black AT&T
• SAMSUNG SGH-i607 BLACKJACK SMARTPHONE Used Black AT&T
• RENEWABLE SOLAR WIND ENERGY CELLS WATT WEBSITE BUSINESS
• Hydropower Renewable Energy by Thames & Kosmos New
• Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth
• Men’s Journal January 2009 Emile Hirsch’s Congo Diary A
• LG VX5400 CAMERA PHONE Used Dark Grey VERIZON
• PALM TREO 750 MOBILE PDA Used Blue AT&T
• Samsung X507 GSM Cell Phone Used Blue/Dark Grey AT&T
• Nokia 6030B Cell Phone Used Silver T-Mobile
• Plantronics Voyager 835 Bluetooth
• Kyocera KX9D Cell Phone New White/Black VIRGIN MOBILE B