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The aim of this paper is to test whether a stable long-term relationship exists between oil prices and the US effective exchange rate, expressed in real terms. To this end, we proceed to a cointegration and causality study between the two variables. Our results indicate that causality runs from oil prices to the exchange rate and that the relationship between the two variables is transmitted through the US net foreign asset position.

Vast natural resources and strained water supplies make Mexico a valuable geographic setting for studying the energy-water nexus. While Mexico has historically been a major oil producing country, it struggles with water stress, as much of its land area is experiencing or approaching physical water scarcity. Solving many of Mexico's water issues will require energy for extracting, transporting, and treating water where it is needed most. Yet such energy use is not always possible since many people are not connected to an electricity grid or other decentralized energy infrastructure. In addition, a continuation of the almost decade-long trend of declining oil production and exports might reduce revenues and available energy to fund and operate new water systems. Consequently, there is an opportunity to improve water services through use of distributed renewable energy technologies that do not directly require fossil resources or large-scale infrastructure. Various policies and technologies are relevant to the energy-water nexus on a decentralized scale, which are covered in this manuscript. We use an integrated technology policy framework to assess the efficacy of integrating renewable energy and water systems in Mexico via case studies of technologies affecting energy-water policy objectives and

Abstract Corn ethanol produced in the US and sugarcane ethanol produced in Brazil are the world’s leading sources of biofuel. Current US biofuel policies create both incentives and constraints for the import of ethanol from Brazil and together with the cost competitiveness and greenhouse gas intensity of sugarcane ethanol compared to corn ethanol will determine the extent of these imports. This study analyzes the supply-side determinants of cost competitiveness and compares the greenhouse gas intensity of corn ethanol and sugarcane ethanol delivered to US ports. We find that while the cost of sugarcane ethanol production in Brazil is lower than that of corn ethanol in the US, the inclusion of transportation costs for the former and co-product credits for the latter changes their relative competitiveness. We also find that the relative cost of ethanol in the US and Brazil is highly sensitive to the prevailing exchange rate and prices of feedstocks. At an exchange rate of US$1=R$2.15 the cost of corn ethanol is 15% lower than the delivered cost of sugarcane ethanol at a US port. Sugarcane ethanol has lower GHG emissions than corn ethanol but a price of over $113 per ton of CO2 is needed to affect competitiveness.

AbstractThis article extends the Chavas‐Cox approach to non‐parametric analysis by incorporating undesirable outputs to provide a more complete representation of the production technology. Inner and outer non‐parametric technology bounds are constructed. The methods are illustrated with application to time series data for the Canadian pulp and paper industry. Conventional measures that ignore changes in pollutant outputs underestimate true productivity growth. Further, there is a large gap between estimates generated with reference to inner and outer bounds to the technology, suggesting that researchers need to be aware of the limitations of results derived from analyses relying only on DEA methods.

AbstractIn the first dispute on renewable energy to come to WTO dispute settlement, the domestic content requirement of Ontario's feed-in tariff was challenged as a discriminatory investment-related measure and as a prohibited import substitution subsidy. The Panel and Appellate Body agreed that Canada was violating the GATT and the TRIMS Agreement. But the SCM Article 3 claim by Japan and the European Union remains unadjudicated, because neither tribunal made a finding that the price guaranteed for electricity from renewable sources constitutes a ‘benefit’ pursuant to the SCM Agreement. Although the Appellate Body provides useful guidance to future Panels on how the existence of a benefit could be calculated, the most noteworthy aspect of the new jurisprudence is the Appellate Body's reasoning that delineating the proper market for ‘benefit’ analysis entails respect for the policy choices made by a government. Thus, in this dispute, the proper market is electricity produced only from wind and solar energy.

This is a defining moment for the Great Lakes St Lawrence region, with the opportunity to renovate the regime for ecosystem improvement, protection and sustainability. The binational Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement was first signed in 1972. The outcome of a 2007 review of the Agreement by government and citizens, resulted in a broad call for and revisions to the Agreement, so that it can once again serve as a visionary document driving binational cooperation to address long-standing, new and emerging Great Lakes environmental issues in the 21st century. A prescription for renegotiating the Agreement to generate a revitalized and sustainable future mandates that science inform contemporary public policy, third Party Mediation presses for and coordinates a deliberate negotiation, and inclusive discourse and public engagement be integral through the process.