Ken Silverstein, Author at Environment+Energy Leader

Water Scarcity is Making for Some Scary Conditions

March 1, 2016April 4, 2017 by Ken Silverstein

In a study published in Science Advances, Mesfin M. Mekonnen and Arjen Y. Hoekstra estimate that over 4 billion people, approximately two-thirds of the world’s population, face severe water scarcity for at least one month out of the year – far greater than previous estimates of between 1.7 billion and ... Read more »

Once Staggered, Electricity Reform is Still Fighting

February 29, 2016September 1, 2022 by Ken Silverstein

Fifteen years ago, retail electricity deregulation took a mean right hook and was against the ropes. And while the Enron debacle and the California crisis sidelined free market reforms, they did not knock them out. Today, about 17 million electricity customers have exercised their right to choose among providers. Having ... Read more »

California Water Bond Funding Will Begin to Flow

February 29, 2016February 29, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

Two years ago, Californians voted to pass Proposition 1, a $7.5 billion general obligation bond, also known as the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014. As part of developing a comprehensive water plan for California’s future, Proposition 1 provides $2.7 billion of continuously appropriated funds for the ... Read more »

EPA Chief: Methane Emissions ‘Substantially Higher Than We Thought’

February 29, 2016December 9, 2022 by Ken Silverstein

Energy markets may now be awash in natural gas but the fuel has, well, fueled an economic boom in the United States. Not only has it changed the way electricity is generated but it has also given the manufacturing sector here a critical edge. Anything standing in its way? Excessive ... Read more »

With More Ambitious Carbon Pollution Cuts, RGGI Can Continue to Lead on Climate

February 26, 2016February 26, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

While the Supreme Court has temporarily delayed implementation of the federal Clean Power Plan, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the nation’s first cap-and-trade program designed to cut carbon pollution from the power sector, continues to move forward. RGGI is a pioneering collaboration among nine Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states – ... Read more »

Will Hawaii’s Attempts to Elevate Energy Storage be Successful?

February 26, 2016April 19, 2022 by Ken Silverstein

With all the hoopla over utility commission rulings regarding how rooftop solar gets treated in California and Nevada, we almost forgot to bring up Hawaii, which has enacted some quirky rules of its own. The state, consisting of several islands, has the highest retail electric rates in the country. At ... Read more »

How the Relationship between the kW and kWh is Changing Utility Operation

February 25, 2016February 25, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

The energy industry is in the midst of a grand transition that may de-emphasize the American public’s best understood electricity attribute of energy efficiency (EE), which focuses on reducing the amount of kilowatt hours (kWh) consumed. Far more important to utility operations and grid stability/security is demand management focusing on ... Read more »

Water Shortages May Cut Short US Energy Revolution. What’s Needed?

February 25, 2016February 24, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

With the shale gas boom reverberating across the United States, the country has found an abundant and cheap energy source — one that is reducing energy costs for corporations while also cutting the emissions of industrials and utilities. But while there’s plenty of natural gas, there’s not now enough water ... Read more »

Despite its High Cost, Energy Storage Sees Light in Domestic and Global Markets

February 24, 2016February 25, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

Global energy consumption is on the rise. But the price of modern technologies is falling, and that includes not just those to generate cleaner fuels but also those to harness the electrons of those sustainable sources. What does all this mean to environmental managers? While solar generation is becoming more ... Read more »

ERC: Week Ending: February 19, 2015

February 24, 2016September 1, 2022 by Ken Silverstein

Short-Term Price Benchmark Trends The national average benchmark price for retail electricity last week dropped to $.0725 per kilowatt hour. Texas prices dropped a substantial -3.3 percent. New York and Illinois experienced decreases of -1.4% and -1.3%, respectively. Although relatively minor, prices slightly increased in Ohio (0.4%), Pennsylvania (0.2%), and ... Read more »

Ithaca College is Shooting for the Sun and Others are Aiming Just as High

February 23, 2016February 23, 2016 by Ken Silverstein

Ithaca College said it would add 2.9 megawatts per hour of solar to power roughly 10 percent of its energy needs. The project is getting financed through a 25-year power-purchase agreement whereby the college has its costs fixed — a move that will offset 888 metric tons of carbon dioxide ... Read more »

NERC’s New Critical Infrastructure Protection Standards : Lessons from its Pilot Program

February 23, 2016September 1, 2022 by Ken Silverstein

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), a quasi-governmental organization charged with protecting the reliability of the nation’s power grid, is about to implement a major overhaul of some of its reliability standards. Two authors who participated in a recent pilot program to test the standards —Michael Gianunzio and James ... Read more »

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