Alternative Energy: Political, Economic, and Social Feasibility

by Christopher A. Simon University of Utah

Overview

The renewable and alternative energy markets and energy policy have evolved rapidly in recent years. This fully revised and expanded third edition continues to emphasize the political, economic and social feasibility of alternative energies and adds chapters on energy storage, ..

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538169964
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	04/05/2024
Edition description:	Third Edition
Pages:	406
Product dimensions:	6.32(w) x 9.31(h) x 1.04(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Christopher A. Simon is professor of political science, Interim Director of the Masters in Public Policy Program, and a former Director of the Masters in Public Administration Program at The University of Utah.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix

Preface xi

About the Author xv

1 Why Alternative Energy and Fuels? 1

Climate Change and Carbon 4

Energy and Water 7

Carbon-Based Fuels: Current and Future Availability 11

Common Fossil Energy Sources: U.S. Supply and Use 12

Culture Shifts and the Rise of Green Politics 16

Green Politics and Environmental Public Interest Groups 17

New Environmental Paradigm and Alternative Energy 19

Institutional Change and Influence 19

Global Demands and Conflict 26

Chapter Summary 27

References 29

Court Cases 34

2 Studying Public Policy and Alternative Energy/Fuels 35

Roles for Public Policy in Alternative Energy/Fuel Development 35

Policy Process 39

Agenda Setting 41

Policy Formation 42

Policy Implementation 43

Policy Evaluation 44

Policy Termination/Change 45

Policy Types 46

Bottom-Up Policy Making/Top-Down Policy Making 48

Collaborative Policy Making 49

Federalism and Energy Policy 51

Policy Frameworks/Models 52

Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) 53

Multiple Streams (MS) 55

Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) 57

Punctuated Equilibrium (PE) 58

Policy Diffusion 58

Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) 59

Intergovernmentalism 60

Native Americans, Tribal Lands, and Renewable Energy 61

Chapter Summary 61

References 62

3 Alternative Energy/Fuels as a Public Policy Innovation 65

Defining Alternative Energy and Alternative Fuels 65

What Are Alternative Fuels? 68

Policy Innovation and Alternative Energy 68

The Waves of Policy Innovation 70

Oil Shock I/Pre-PURPA 1970s (1973-1978) 71

Secondary Oil Shock Period (1979-1982) 75

Resurgence of Cheap(er) Petroleum and Growth of Deregulation (1983-1999) 77

Bush I: EPAct Reauthorization (1992) 80

Clinton and Post-EPAct 1992

Reauthorization (1992-2005) 84

Bush II: EPAct 2005 Reauthorization, ESIA 2007, FERC Order Innovations, and Electricity Markets (2001-2009) 87

Obama: ARRA 2009, Coal Rules, and Paris Agreement (2009-2017) 92

Trump: Resurgence of Coal and Reversal of Climate Policy (2017-present) 94

Chapter Summary 96

References 98

4 Solar Energy 101

What Is Solar Energy? How Does It Work? 101

Silicon-Based Photovoltaic Cells 103

Technical Feasibility of Solar Photovoltaics 105

Technical Feasibility of Solar Thermal 108

Economics of Solar Power 111

Current Solar PV Energy Economic Infrastructure and Levelized Cost of Electricity 112

Economics of Solar Thermal-Concentrated Solar Power 115

Economic Development Impacts 116

Case Study-Rifle, Colorado: Using Solar Energy to Power Municipal Water and Sewer Systems 117

Federal Solar Energy Technologies Program 118

Major Federal Solar Incentives 122

Commercial Incentives 122

Personal Tax Incentives for Solar PV and Solar Thermal 123

State and Local Efforts 123

California 124

Honolulu, Hawai'i 125

Chapter Summary 125

References 127

5 Wind Energy 132

What Is Wind Power? How Does It Work? 132

Technical Feasibility of Wind Power Systems 136

Economic Feasibility of Wind Power Systems 144

Political and Social Feasibility of Wind Energy 149

Chapter Summary 155

References 155

6 Geothermal Energy 159

What Is Geothermal Energy? How Does It Work? 159

Case Study-California Job Growth and Geothermal Development 160

Safety, Environmental Damage, and Emission-Related Issues: Geothermal Energy 161

Technical Feasibility of Geothermal Energy 163

Heat Pumps 163

Other Forms of Direct Use 164

Flash Steam Power 166

Binary Systems 168

Economics of Geothermal Energy 172

Federal Geothermal Energy Programming 175

State and Local Efforts 177

Chapter Summary 178

References 179

7 New Century Fuels and Their Uses 185

Fuel as a Concept 186

Natural Gas 189

Other Alternative Fuels 191

Clean Diesel 191

Biodiesel 191

Ethanol 192

The Hydrogen Initiative 194

Hydrogen and Fuel Cells 196

Technical Feasibility Issues 196

Economic Feasibility Issues 199

Other Types of Fuel Cells Currently in Use and/or Development 201

Alkaline Fuel Cells (AFC) 201

Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC) 201

Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells (MCFC) 202

Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cells (PAFC) 203

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) 204

Applications for Next-Generation Alternative Fuels, Fuel Cells 204

Transportation 204

Military Applications 206

Residential 207

Commercial 207

Chapter Summary 207

References 208

8 Historical Precedents: Alternative Energy/Fuels and Legitimacy Issues 217

Risk and Culture: Alternative Energy and Hidden Costs 219

Hydroelectric Dams 224

Nuclear Energy 229

The Rebirth of Nuclear Energy? 237

Chapter Summary 239

References 239

9 Conceptualizing Alternative Energy Policy and Future Directions 243

Future Directions 244

The Movement of Public Opinion 250

Concluding Remarks 258

References 262

Index 265

Editorial Reviews

This book includes comprehensive and timely information on renewable (solar, wind, and geothermal) and nuclear energy. The third edition significantly expands on the previous editions and adds discussions on energy storage, the power grid, and applications of AI. Readers will significantly enrich their knowledge of the technical, historical, political, and societal aspects of these subjects. My students have used both the first and second editions as the main text in our “Alternative Energy Fundamentals” course. I am eagerly anticipating the implementation of this third edition in the next class.

Mariana Eneva

Simon’s Alternative Energy provides a comprehensive discussion of renewable energy developments in the United States clearly describing the pathway through historical background to current practices. General policy perspectives and specific policy developments are brought together. The spectrum of renewable energy technology developments are discussed and well-illustrated with case studies. I have found the text to be highly accessible to a broad audience including engineering, natural resources management, environmental and sustainability studies, and business students. Simon has made a unique and important contribution.

Charles R. Standridge

Christopher Simon’s second edition of Alternative Energy: Political, Economic, and Social Feasibility provides an excellent and comprehensive updated overview of the policy dynamics surrounding the adoption of alternative energy technologies. With the increasingly severe effects of global climate change and the need to move away from fossil fuels, Simon’s book articulately lays out the obstacles and possibilities of alternative energy adoption.

Brent S. Steel

This second edition is now the definitive overview of the realities of adopting alternative energy technologies. Focusing mostly on the US situation but acknowledging that energy availability and technology choices cannot be understood apart from the international context, Simon makes an unassailable case that the world’s energy needs cannot be met without alternative energy. He points out that adoption decisions are not made in a technocratic vacuum but are instead made according to various political, economic, and social feasibilities. Explaining how the current mix of energy technologies was reached and the possibilities going forward, Simon provides a sophisticated understanding of the policy process. His analysis is comprehensive, accurate, and fair to all technologies—from the more established such as nuclear, solar, and wind to the less common, e.g., biodiesel, geothermal, and hydrogen fuel cells. Neither an advocacy book nor a book for those who want simple answers to solving the US’s (and the world’s) energy problems, this well-written resource is an impressive accomplishment. Summing Up: Essential. All readers.

Choice Reviews

A bit over a decade ago I wrote about the 1st edition the following: “The economics, basic science, and cultural and political dynamics associated with public policy reformulation in the area of alternative energy sources are indeed complex…Simon should be commended for his artful framing of this issue, and for his fair and even-handed assessment of the public policy options…” The decade since the publication of the first edition has NOT witnessed the advent of a consensus on any one (or even a few) of these options as a basis for a minimal fossil fuel use future. Quite to the contrary, while the global consensus on anthropomorphic sources of global warming has been bolstered by convincing evidence of a pending disaster, little agreement is to found on U.S. alternative energy policy. New “next generation” developments in the areas of solar thermal energy, enhanced geothermal, ocean thermal energy conversion, pumped hydro, and simultaneous major advancements in the conceptualization of energy storage systems and battery designs have added further to the need for fair and even-handed discussion of the economics, basic science, engineering and socio-political dynamics associated with alternative energy sources. This 2nd edition of the Simon book is even better than the first; while equally balanced in its treatment of public policy options, it is even better in its discussion of the basic science, engineering, and socio-political dynamics at play in formulating an appropriate energy policy for the U.S. Simon’s maturity of thought, clear dedication to mastery over the feasibility of the policy options at play, and genuine desire to provide a sound and reliable foundation for public policy debate are clearly in evidence in this 2nd edition. I can recommend this book in the full confidence that students and policy makers alike will find it informative and insightful, and that it will contribute importantly to the U.S. energy policy literature.

Nicholas P. Lovrich

The world is undeniably undergoing a transition, if not a transformation, to a low-carbon economy. How society harnesses alternative forms of energy such as solar, wind, and geothermal is a central component of both understanding and possibly steering that transformation. This second edition of Alternative Energy is pivotal in equipping readers with the understanding they need of history, legitimacy, policy and even politics for engaging with this highly important topic.

Benjamin K. Sovacool

Americans face a major challenge in the coming decades of reformulating their public policies to reflect a world in which fossil fuels are no longer plentiful, easily accessible and relatively inexpensive to prepare for market and ultimate consumption. The economics, the basic science, and the cultural and political dynamics associated with public policy reformulation in the area of alternative energy sources are indeed complex—and the challenge is appropriately framed as a 'wicked problem' by Christopher Simon in this excellent monograph. Simon should be commended for his artful framing of this issue, and for his fair and even-handed assessment of the public policy options facing citizens and policymakers alike as we struggle to assure future generations of a quality of life at least as good as that we have enjoyed during our period of stewardship over the planet's resources. I can recommend this well-informed overview of the alternative energy challenges which lie ahead for our country without reservation, and in confidence that the readers of this volume will find it at once informative and insightful.

Nicholas P. Lovrich Jr.

This book takes a persuasive, broad view of the coming paradigmatic shift towards a sustainable energy future. Dr. Simon views this transition as the outcome of interactions among market forces of stakeholder dynamics, values evolution and institutional redesign.

T. R. Lakshmanan

This book is packed with information on most of the major alternative energy sources. Especially useful will be the end-of-chapter summaries and the references. Controversial subjects are treated with an even hand.

John Reynolds

This second edition is now the definitive overview of the realities of adopting alternative energy technologies. Focusing mostly on the US situation but acknowledging that energy availability and technology choices cannot be understood apart from the international context, Simon makes an unassailable case that the world’s energy needs cannot be met without alternative energy. He points out that adoption decisions are not made in a technocratic vacuum but are instead made according to various political, economic, and social feasibilities. Explaining how the current mix of energy technologies was reached and the possibilities going forward, Simon provides a sophisticated understanding of the policy process. His analysis is comprehensive, accurate, and fair to all technologies—from the more established such as nuclear, solar, and wind to the less common, e.g., biodiesel, geothermal, and hydrogen fuel cells. Neither an advocacy book nor a book for those who want simple answers to solving the US’s (and the world’s) energy problems, this well-written resource is an impressive accomplishment. Summing Up: Essential. All readers.

Choice

This second edition is now the definitive overview of the realities of adopting alternative energy technologies. Focusing mostly on the US situation but acknowledging that energy availability and technology choices cannot be understood apart from the international context, Simon makes an unassailable case that the world’s energy needs cannot be met without alternative energy. He points out that adoption decisions are not made in a technocratic vacuum but are instead made according to various political, economic, and social feasibilities. Explaining how the current mix of energy technologies was reached and the possibilities going forward, Simon provides a sophisticated understanding of the policy process. His analysis is comprehensive, accurate, and fair to all technologies—from the more established such as nuclear, solar, and wind to the less common, e.g., biodiesel, geothermal, and hydrogen fuel cells. Neither an advocacy book nor a book for those who want simple answers to solving the US’s (and the world’s) energy problems, this well-written resource is an impressive accomplishment. Summing Up: Essential. All readers.

CHOICE

This book takes a persuasive, broad view of the coming paradigmatic shift towards a sustainable energy future. Dr. Simon views this transition as the outcome of interactions among market forces of stakeholder dynamics, values evolution and institutional redesign.--T. R. Lakshmanan, director, Center for Transportation Studies; Professor, Department of Geography and Environment; Executive Director, Center for

A comprehensive introduction to alternative energy sources and their political, economic, and social feasibility. The topic is important, and there is much of value in Simon's evenhanded presentation of the vulnerabilities and advantages of each source (e.g., geothermal, solar, wind). Simon has produced an accessible, accurate description of how alternative energy sources work and the obstacles to their broader adoption. His book is a significant contribution to the literature. Highly recommended. General readers; students, lower-division undergraduate and up; researchers and practitioners.--CHOICE

This book is packed with information on most of the major alternative energy sources. Especially useful will be the end-of-chapter summaries and the references. Controversial subjects are treated with an even hand.--John Reynolds, University of Oregon

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