scholarly journals Explanations for Wind Turbine Installations: Local and Global Environmental Concerns in the Central Corridor of the United States?

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (18) ◽  
pp. 5830
Author(s):  
John C. Pierce ◽  
Rachel M. Krause ◽  
Sarah L. Hofmeyer ◽  
Bonnie J. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
Wind Power ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
The United States ◽  
County Level ◽  
Physical Conditions ◽  
The North ◽  
Central United States

Even where physical conditions appear perfectly suited for wind power production, there is significant variation in the number of turbines installed. This pattern suggests that physical conditions are a pre-requisite for, but not a determinant of, that production. This study reports the results of an analysis of the county-level correlates of wind power installations in the north–south corridor of the central United States, which contains much of the country’s greatest land-based wind resources. This study focuses on the relative effects of social capital, global climate change concern, and local biodiversity, while controlling for other potential explanations that previous research has identified as leading to support for or to opposition to turbine installation. We find (1) that greater local biodiversity is associated with fewer turbine installations; (2) that the percent of the public who believe humans are causing climate change is not associated with the number of installed turbines; and (3) that a higher degree of county-level social capital is associated with fewer installations. These findings suggest the predominance of local considerations over global ones when it comes to the actual siting of turbines.

scholarly journals Association between county-level social capital and the burden of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the United States

2021 ◽  
Vol 59 ◽  
pp. 21-23
Author(s):  
Mao Yanagisawa ◽  
Ichiro Kawachi ◽  
Christopher A. Scannell ◽  
Carlos Irwin A. Oronce ◽  
Yusuke Tsugawa
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
The United States ◽  
County Level

The Contemporary US Energy System Overview Including A Comparison With China

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael B. McElroy
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Energy System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Personal Consumption ◽  
Energy Economy ◽  
Near Term ◽  
Reduce Emissions

The discussion in chapter 2 addressed what might be described as a microview of the US energy economy— how we use energy as individuals, how we measure our personal consumption, and how we pay for it. We turn attention now to a more expansive perspective— the use of energy on a national scale, including a discussion of associated economic benefits and costs. We focus specifically on implications for emissions of the greenhouse gas CO2. If we are to take the issue of human- induced climate change seriously— and I do— we will be obliged to adjust our energy system markedly to reduce emissions of this gas, the most important agent for human- induced climate change. And we will need to do it sooner rather than later. This chapter will underscore the magnitude of the challenge we face if we are to successfully chart the course to a more sustainable climate- energy future. We turn later to strategies that might accelerate our progress toward this objective.We elected in this volume to focus on the present and potential future of the energy economy of the United States. It is important to recognize that the fate of the global climate system will depend not just on what happens in the United States but also to an increasing extent on what comes to pass in other large industrial economies. China surpassed the United States as the largest national emitter of CO2 in 2006. The United States and China together were responsible in 2012 for more than 42% of total global emissions. Add Russia, India, Japan, Germany, Canada, United Kingdom, South Korea, and Iran to the mix (the other members of the top 10 emitting countries ordered in terms of their relative contributions), and we can account for more than 60% of the global total. Given the importance of China to the global CO2 economy (more than 26% of the present global total and likely to increase significantly in the near term), I decided that it would be instructive to include here at least some discussion of the situation in China— to elaborate what the energy economies of China and the United States have in common, outlining at the same time the factors and challenges that set them apart.

scholarly journals Performance of Landscape Roses Grown with Minimal Input in the North-central, Central, and South-central United States

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 718-730 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Zlesak ◽  
Randy Nelson ◽  
Derald Harp ◽  
Barbara Villarreal ◽  
Nick Howell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
National Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
The South ◽  
Flower Number ◽  
North Central ◽  
The North ◽  
South Central ◽  
Central United States ◽  
Plant Hardiness

Landscape roses (Rosa sp.) are popular flowering shrubs. Consumers are less willing or able to maintain landscape beds than in years past and require plants that are not only attractive, but well-adapted to regional climatic conditions, soil types, and disease and pest pressures. Marketing and distribution of rose cultivars occurs on a national level; therefore, it is difficult for U.S. consumers in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Plant Hardiness Zones 3 to 5 to identify well-adapted, cold-hardy cultivars. Identifying suitable cultivars that have strong genetic resistance to pests and disease and that will tolerate temperature extremes without winter protection in the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 3 to 5 is of tremendous value to consumers and retailers in northern states. Twenty landscape rose cultivars, primarily developed in north-central North America, were evaluated at five locations in the United States (three in the north-central United States, one in the central United States, and one in the south-central United States) using the low-input, multiyear Earth-Kind® methodology. Six roses had ≥75% plant survival at the end of the study and were in the top 50% of performers for overall mean horticultural rating at each of the three north-central U.S. sites: ‘Lena’, ‘Frontenac’, ‘Ole’, ‘Polar Joy’, ‘Sunrise Sunset’, and ‘Sven’. Five of these six roses met the same criteria at the central United States (exception ‘Lena’) and the south-central United States (exception ‘Polar Joy’) sites. Cultivar, rating time, and their interaction were highly significant, and block effects were not significant for horticultural rating for all single-site analyses of variance. Significant positive correlations were found between sites for flower number, flower diameter, and overall horticultural rating. Significant negative correlations were found between flower number and diameter within each site and also between black spot (Diplocarpon rosae) lesion size from a previous study and overall horticultural rating for three of the five sites. Cane survival ratings were not significantly correlated with overall horticultural rating, suggesting some cultivars can experience severe winter cane dieback, yet recover and perform well. Data from this study benefit multiple stakeholders, including nurseries, landscapers, and consumers, with evidence-based regional cultivar recommendations and breeders desiring to identify regionally adapted parents.

scholarly journals County-Level Social Capital and Bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections in the United States

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 165-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kwame Owusu-Edusei ◽  
Bryttany McClendon-Weary ◽  
Lara Bull ◽  
Thomas L. Gift ◽  
Sevgi O. Aral
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
Sexually Transmitted Infections ◽  
The United States ◽  
County Level ◽  
Sexually Transmitted

China-US deal sets stage for new climate change regime

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
The United States ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bilateral Agreement ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Game Changer

Significance The United States has already committed, in an unprecedented deal with China in November 2014, to reducing its emissions to 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2025 (an improvement on its previous 17% goal). China in return pledged that its emissions would peak around 2030. This agreement is a game-changer for combating global climate change, since the two countries are the world's largest sources of carbon emissions, together accounting for 40% of the total, and were not covered under the now-expired Kyoto Protocol. Impacts Washington is poised to reclaim its place, lost after Kyoto, as a leader in global efforts against climate change. US-China climate cooperation initiatives could serve as templates for other developing countries. There are new opportunities for trilateral cooperation involving the EU. Fears that the bilateral agreement makes the UNFCCC obsolete are unwarranted, but it could preclude more ambitious efforts.

scholarly journals Hydrodynamics of the Caribbean Low-Level Jet and Its Relationship to Precipitation

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 1477-1494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry H. Cook ◽  
Edward K. Vizy
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South America ◽  
The United States ◽  
Caribbean Basin ◽  
Low Level ◽  
The North ◽  
South Central ◽  
Central United States ◽  
Low Level Jet ◽  
The Caribbean

Abstract The easterly Caribbean low-level jet (CLLJ) is a prominent climate feature over the Intra-America Seas, and it is associated with much of the water vapor transport from the tropical Atlantic into the Caribbean Basin. In this study, the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) is analyzed to improve the understanding of the dynamics of the CLLJ and its relationship to regional rainfall variations. Horizontal momentum balances are examined to understand how jet variations on both diurnal and seasonal time scales are controlled. The jet is geostrophic to the first order. Its previously documented semidiurnal cycle (with minima at about 0400 and 1600 LT) is caused by semidiurnal cycling of the meridional geopotential height gradient in association with changes in the westward extension of the North Atlantic subtropical high (NASH). A diurnal cycle is superimposed, associated with a meridional land–sea breeze (solenoidal circulation) onto the north coast of South America, so that the weakest jet velocities occur at 1600 LT. The CLLJ is present throughout the year, and it is known to vary in strength semiannually. Peak magnitudes in July are related to the seasonal cycle of the NASH, and a second maximum in February is caused by heating over northern South America. From May through September, zonal geopotential gradients associated with summer heating over Central America and Mexico induce meridional flow. The CLLJ splits into two branches, including a southerly branch that connects with the Great Plains low-level jet (GPLLJ) bringing moisture into the central United States. During the rest of the year, the flow remains essentially zonal across the Caribbean Basin and into the Pacific. A strong (weak) CLLJ is associated with reduced (enhanced) rainfall over the Caribbean Sea throughout the year in the NARR. The relationship with precipitation over land depends on the season. Despite the fact that the southerly branch of the CLLJ feeds into the meridional GPLLJ in May through September, variations in the CLLJ strength during these months do not impact U.S. precipitation, because the CLLJ strength is varying in response to regional-scale forcing and not to changes in the large-scale circulation. During the cool season, there are statistically significant correlations between the CLLJ index and rainfall over the United States. When the CLLJ is strong, there is anomalous northward moisture transport across the Gulf of Mexico into the central United States and pronounced rainfall increases over Louisiana and Texas. A weak jet is associated with anomalous westerly flow across the southern Caribbean region and significantly reduced rainfall over the south-central United States. No connection between the intensity of the CLLJ and drought over the central United States is found. There are only three drought summers in the NARR period (1980, 1988, and 2006), and the CLLJ was extremely weak in 1988 but not in 1980 or 2006.

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