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Combined Heat and Power: Pathway to Lower Energy Costs, Reduced Emissions, Secure and Resilient Energy Supply
This fact sheet from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) describes the technology, benefits, and potential of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) systems in the United States. It highlights how CHP increases energy efficiency, reduces emissions, and provides resilient power during grid failures, while identifying regulatory barriers and the specific advantages of biomass-fueled systems.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Recovering in Sandy’s wake
Friends of the Earth issued a statement following Hurricane Sandy, characterizing the event as a fossil-fueled superstorm exacerbated by climate change. The organization urges the public to donate to recovery efforts and calls on voters to elect leaders committed to clean energy and environmental protections to address the "new normal" of a changed climate.
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Document type: Statement
Superstorm Sandy is a Wake-Up Call
A statement by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) arguing that Superstorm Sandy serves as a catalyst for urgent climate action, energy transformation, and the implementation of resilient infrastructure to mitigate and adapt to a changing climate.
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Document type: Statement
Limiting the Cost of Renewables: Lessons for California
This research paper evaluates various cost-limiting tools used in U.S. state renewable energy policies—including alternative compliance payments, contract price caps, and retail rate impact caps—to provide recommendations for California's RPS cost limitation. The analysis finds that while cost limits can insure against extreme costs, they often create market uncertainty, may be set based on political rather than economic data, and can inadvertently act as price floors, potentially hindering the achievement of renewable energy targets.
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Document type: Research paper
What is District Energy?
This 2011 fact sheet explains district energy systems, which use central plants and underground pipes to provide efficient heating and cooling to clusters of buildings. It highlights the role of combined heat and power (CHP) and renewable energy in these systems, noting that while over 700 such systems exist in the U.S., high upfront costs and policy gaps remain barriers to further expansion.
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Document type: Fact sheet
GHG_FinalSummary
This 2010 report by the World Resources Institute (WRI) analyzes the potential for the United States to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through existing federal regulatory authorities and announced state actions through 2030. The study evaluates three levels of regulatory ambition—'Lackluster', 'Middle-of-the-Road', and 'Go-Getter'—across various sectors including power plants, transportation, and industry. It concludes that while existing tools can drive significant reductions, they are insufficient on their own to meet the Obama Administration's Copenhagen pledge or the IPCC's recommended targets for limiting global temperature increases.
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Document type: Report
State Actions on Climate Change: A Focus on How Our Communities Grow
This report by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) analyzes how state climate action plans in the United States incorporate land use, transportation, and green building policies as of July 2009. It finds that while transportation and green building are common, specific 'smart growth' land use practices are the least frequent component of these plans.
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Document type: Report
Global Warming Case Taken Up By Supreme Court Statement of Norman Dean, Executive Director, Friends of the Earth
A statement by Norman Dean, Executive Director of Friends of the Earth, regarding the Supreme Court's decision to hear a case on whether the Bush Administration must regulate carbon dioxide emissions under the Clean Air Act.
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Document type: Statement
Developing Solar Friendly Communities
This report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) provides an overview of model standards and policy design criteria for permitting, inspection, interconnection, and net metering of distributed photovoltaic (PV) systems. It aims to help local governments and utilities reduce non-hardware balance of system costs—which can account for up to 40% of installed system costs—by adopting streamlined, standardized processes. The document highlights specific model frameworks such as the Solar ABCs Expedited Permit Process and IREC Model Interconnection Procedures, while detailing the existing solar-friendly policy landscape in Colorado.
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Document type: Report
Legislation to Implement the POPs, PIC, and LRTAP POPs Agreements
This written testimony by Glenn M. Wiser of the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), submitted to the U.S. House of Representatives on March 2, 2006, advocates for legislation to implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), the LRTAP POPs Protocol, and the Rotterdam PIC Convention. Wiser compares two proposed bills to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)—H.R. 4800 (Solis bill) and H.R. 4591 (Gillmor bill)—arguing that only the Solis bill adequately implements the health and environmental protection goals of the Stockholm Convention.
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Document type: Statement
Legislation to implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
A joint statement from numerous environmental and health organizations urging the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce to support the Solis bill (H.R. 4800) over the Gillmor bill (H.R. 4591) to implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) via amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
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Document type: Statement
Backgrounder: Phasing Out Alberta's Coal Plants
This fact sheet by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment and partners advocates for the phase-out of coal-fired power plants in Alberta by 2030. It details the environmental and health impacts of Alberta's coal reliance, compares the province's energy targets with other jurisdictions, and proposes a replacement strategy based on energy efficiency and renewable energy.
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Document type: Fact sheet
The U. S. Experience with Economic Incentives for Protecting the Environment
This report section details the use of economic incentives—specifically pollution charges, fees, and taxes—to protect the environment in the United States. It examines various instruments including water and air emission fees, solid waste disposal charges, product taxes, and specialized fees for wetlands and grazing, analyzing their roles in raising revenue and incentivizing pollution reduction.
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Document type: Report
stateagspopsletter-967e5ecbdb84bb51.pdf
A letter dated February 28, 2006, from several U.S. state Attorneys General to the House Committee on Energy & Commerce opposing specific provisions of HR 4591. The bill aims to implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs Treaty), but the signees argue it contains overly broad preemption language and flawed EPA review procedures that would hinder state and federal environmental protections.
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Document type: Statement
Microsoft Word - US Muni Blog Table 2.pdf.odt
This document is a fact sheet containing a table of individual green municipal bonds issued in the United States during 2017, detailing the issuers, amounts issued in USD, dates, project types, and CBI certification status.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Advanced Clean Cars II: Electric vehicles can pave the way for clean air and a growing U.S. economy
This fact sheet by Energy Innovation analyzes the potential impacts of the Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC II) rule, which mandates increasing sales of new zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) starting in 2026 to reach 100 percent by 2035. Using the Energy Policy Simulator model, the document evaluates the benefits for the 16 '177 States' that can adopt this California-led standard under the U.S. Clean Air Act.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Why State Land Use Reform Should Be a Priority Climate Lever for America
This technical supplement describes the methodology used by RMI to analyze how state-level land use reform in the United States could reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2033. The analysis compares a 'business as usual' scenario against a 'low VMT' scenario where new housing is concentrated in dense, walkable, and transit-oriented areas.
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Document type: Report
Making Waves at The Atlantic: A Rebuttal to The Atlantic Magazine’s Contention That “We’re Going to Keep Burning Oil—and Lots of It”
This document is a rebuttal by Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) to an article and subsequent response by Charles C. Mann in The Atlantic. Lovins argues that Mann ignores the role of efficiency and technological innovation in reducing oil demand and misrepresents the reliability and economic viability of renewable energy, specifically in Germany.
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Document type: Report
Bottom Line on Energy Savings Certificates
This fact sheet from the World Resources Institute explainsL explains Energy Savings Certificates (ESCs), which are tradable certificates representing energy savings—typically one megawatt-hour (MWh)—used by utilities to meet energy efficiency targets in compliance and voluntary markets.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Bottom Line on GHG Emissions Registries
This fact sheet by the World Resources Institute explains the function, types, and regulatory status of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions registries, specifically focusing on the legal requirement for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to establish a national mandatory registry by mid-2008.
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Document type: Fact sheet