Research Library

Energy and environment fellow Rachel A. Meidl discusses how the Covid-19 pandemic is disrupting the waste, plastic, and recycling industries. In response, she stresses the need for a systems-level approach. Forbes blog: https://bit.ly/3cDbseB

Author Julie Cohn traces historical trends and experiences with the U.S. electrical grid to help frame choices as more renewables are brought into the system.

Using a framework based on vulnerability, risk and offsets provides valuable insights for evaluating the security of an energy system in transition, writes energy fellow Mark Finley.

By Paul Lagunes, Baker Institute for Public Policy; Xiaoxuan Yang, Columbia University; and Andrés Castro, Columbia University. Corruption is a persistent problem throughout Latin America. Higher rates of perceived corruption are associated with lower levels of economic welfare and direct foreign investment, write the authors.

The rising use of low-speed electric vehicles (LSEVs) in China may have a dramatic effect on local gasoline demand and therefore global oil prices, writes energy fellow Gabriel Collins.

In the near term, a ban on shale development in Mexico will have little impact since factors like limited infrastructure and access to water would likely stall progress in any case, the authors conclude. In the long-run, a ban may adversely affect efforts to diversify Mexico’s gas supply.

The author examines provisions in the USMCA for resolving investor and trade disputes among the three North American countries party to the agreement.

Energy fellow Rachel A. Meidl examines federal and international efforts to assess the safe transport of crude oil by rail and to specifically consider the roles of vapor pressure and volatility in accident scenarios.

Center for Energy Studies senior director Ken Medlock provided an overview of trends in electricity generation by source — from coal and natural gas to wind, solar and biomass — and the role of infrastructure during testimony before the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on March 5.  Download the PDFs below to read his written testimony and the questions for the record submitted to Medlock, as well as his answers.

There is a growing global momentum to address the critical economic and environmental problem of plastic waste management. Fellow Rachel A. Meidl discusses the key elements and causes of this problem and explores policy actions for reducing the reliance on single-use plastics.