Deciphering the true life cycle environmental impacts and costs of the mega-scale shale gas-to-olefins projects in the United States

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 820-840 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chang He ◽  
Fengqi You
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
The United States ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Environmental Models ◽  
The U.S

Using detailed techno-economic-environmental models, we investigate the environmental impacts and production costs of the mega-scale shale gas-to-olefins projects in the U.S.

The United States in the Global Economy

2020 ◽  
pp. 11-34
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Irwin
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
International Trade ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Basic Facts ◽  
Fragmentation Of Production ◽  
The U.S

This chapter sets out basic facts about international trade and the U.S. economy. It describes how world trade has expanded rapidly in the recent decades and explains how the development provides the context in which to consider trade policy. The chapter discusses the reasons for the increase in trade and how trade has changed with the fragmentation of production and the increase in trade of intermediate goods. It talks about the state of public opinion on the question of globalization. It also analyzes protectionist policies that directly harm employment in domestic industries by raising production costs in addition to forcing consumers to pay higher price for the products they buy.

scholarly journals BEEF SPECIES-RUMINANT NUTRITION CACTUS BEEF SYMPOSIUM: A role for beef cattle in sustainable U.S. food production1

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (9) ◽  
pp. 4010-4020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire B Gleason ◽  
Robin R White
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
The United States ◽  
Beef Production ◽  
Beef Industry ◽  
Animal Agriculture ◽  
The U.S

Abstract The increasing global population, limited resource availability, and global focus on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions put pressure on animal agriculture industries to critically evaluate and optimize the role they play in a sustainable food production system. The objective of this review is to summarize evidence of the various roles that the U.S. beef industry plays in the U.S. and global agricultural systems. As the world’s largest beef producer, the United States reaps considerable economic benefit from the beef industry through strong domestic and international demand, as well as employment opportunities for many Americans. Beef production contributes to GHG emissions, land use, and water use, among other critical environmental impacts but provides an important source of essential micronutrients for human consumption. The U.S. beef industry provides sufficient product to meet the protein, vitamin B12, omega-3 and -6 fatty acid requirements of 43, 137, 47, and 487 million people, respectively. In the United States, beef production was estimated to account for 53% of GHG emissions from U.S. animal agriculture and 25% of GHG emissions from all of U.S. agriculture. Footprinting studies suggest that much of the land use and water use associated with beef production are attributed to the development of feed crops or pastureland. On a global scale, beef from U.S. origin is exported to numerous developed and developing countries, representing an important international nutrient routing. Along with other prominent beef-producing nations, the United States continues to pursue a greater level of sustainability in its cattle industry, which will bear important implications for future global food security. Efforts to reduce the environmental impacts of beef production will likely be the strongest drivers of enhanced sustainability.

A Comparative Life-Cycle Assessment of Briquetting Logging Residues and Lumber Manufacturing Coproducts in Western United States

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sevda Alanya-Rosenbaum ◽  
Richard D. Bergman ◽  
Indroneil Ganguly ◽  
Francesca Pierobon
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Timber Harvest ◽  
The United States ◽  
Western United States ◽  
Forest Residues ◽  
Post Harvest ◽  
Forest Residue

Abstract. Timber harvest activities in the western United States have resulted in large volumes of low- to no-value logging (forest) residues. Alternatives to pile-and-burning are needed to best utilize this material and to mitigate the resultant environmental impacts. Briquetting (densifying) forest residues near-woods is one such option and is the focus of this study. This study presents a cradle-to-grave life-cycle assessment (LCA) performed to evaluate the overall environmental impacts associated with briquetting post-harvest forest residues and dry sawmill residues (sawdust) in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) region of the United States. Environmental impacts resulting from the two briquette production systems were compared with firewood and propane production, which are common residential heating sources in rural areas of the PNW, on a per 1 MJ of useful energy for domestic heating. In the briquetted post-harvest forest residue system, the feedstock preparation stage had the largest share in global warming (GW) impact, mainly resulting from the drying process (69.5%), followed by transportation. Valorization of post-harvest forest residues, in combination with a briquetter, to produce a bioenergy carrier was revealed to be advantageous in smog, acidification, and eutrophication impact categories, with considerable environmental benefits from avoided pile-and-burn emissions. With all scenarios investigated, briquette production from post-harvest forest residues with high dryer efficiency showed lowest GW impact compared to briquetting sawmill residues and firewood supply chain. For a scenario analysis, LCA showed that using a diesel generator to support the forest residue briquetter operation resulted in 45% higher GW impact compared to use of a wood-gas-powered generator. Keywords: Bioenergy, Biomass densification, Briquette, Forest residues, Life-cycle assessment, Sawdust.

Geographic Differences of Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction From Electric Vehicle Deployment in the United States

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fan Yang ◽  
Chris Yuan ◽  
Xiang Zhao
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Electric Vehicle ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ghg Emission ◽  
Co2 Equivalent ◽  
The U.S

The use of electric vehicle (EV) has been widely recognized as an effective way to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transportation sector. However, the geographic difference of GHG emission reduction from EV deployment is seldom explored. This paper presents a study on the total GHG emissions generated from the life cycle of an EV (represented by Nissan Leaf) and an internal combustion vehicle (ICV) (represented by Toyota Corolla) for benchmarking on the potential emission reductions in the United States. The differences of electricity mix and driving style in each state are considered in the analysis. The results indicate a 43% GHG emissions reduction from ICV with the deployment of EV under the current average United States’ electricity generation scheme and transportation style. But the life cycle GHG emission reductions vary significantly from state to state in the U.S. Some states such as Indiana, Wyoming and West Virginia can only get 7237, 9501 and 9860 kg CO2 equivalent reduced, while some states such as Vermont, New Jersey and Idaho can get 57915, 57206 and 49039 kg CO2 equivalent GHG emissions reduced. This study can be useful in supporting future decision-making and strategy development for EV deployment in the U.S.

scholarly journals What Experts Say About the Environmental Risks of Shale Gas Development

2015 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan J. Krupnick ◽  
Hal G. Gordon
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Environmental Risk ◽  
Shale Gas ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
The United States ◽  
Environmental Risks ◽  
Voluntary Action ◽  
Cost Of Electricity ◽  
The Cost

Public discourse suggests a lack of consensus in the United States regarding the environmental impacts of shale gas development. Newly available shale gas has reduced the cost of electricity and heating and replaced coal, but public fears about the environment threaten to curtail those gains. We designed the first survey-based analysis of the views of government, industry, academic, and nongovernmental experts to identify their priorities for regulation and voluntary action among 264 routine and 14 accidental environmental risk “pathways.” We find that nongovernmental experts select many more problems but that there is considerable agreement on the most important ones, which can guide research, policies, and practices so that shale gas benefits continue and environmental impacts are limited.

scholarly journals Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States

2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 1779-1786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra L. Thiel ◽  
Matthew Eckelman ◽  
Richard Guido ◽  
Matthew Huddleston ◽  
Amy E. Landis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Surgical Procedures ◽  
The United States

An American Language

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosina Lozano
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
National Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Spanish Language ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Language Recognition ◽  
Political Language ◽  
Political Issue ◽  
History Of ◽  
The U.S

An American Language is a political history of the Spanish language in the United States. The nation has always been multilingual and the Spanish language in particular has remained as an important political issue into the present. After the U.S.-Mexican War, the Spanish language became a language of politics as Spanish speakers in the U.S. Southwest used it to build territorial and state governments. In the twentieth century, Spanish became a political language where speakers and those opposed to its use clashed over what Spanish's presence in the United States meant. This book recovers this story by using evidence that includes Spanish language newspapers, letters, state and territorial session laws, and federal archives to profile the struggle and resilience of Spanish speakers who advocated for their language rights as U.S. citizens. Comparing Spanish as a language of politics and as a political language across the Southwest and noncontiguous territories provides an opportunity to measure shifts in allegiance to the nation and exposes differing forms of nationalism. Language concessions and continued use of Spanish is a measure of power. Official language recognition by federal or state officials validates Spanish speakers' claims to US citizenship. The long history of policies relating to language in the United States provides a way to measure how U.S. visions of itself have shifted due to continuous migration from Latin America. Spanish-speaking U.S. citizens are crucial arbiters of Spanish language politics and their successes have broader implications on national policy and our understanding of Americans.

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