• Energy Research

ABSTRACT: This work explores the concept and modeling of energy sufficiency, differentiating it from energy efficiency. Both elements are vital to rethinking established systems of production and consumption in the face of energy crises and climate change. The developing field of energy sufficiency can potentially constrain energy use within planetary resources while meeting humanity’s needs. Current energy and climate models generally exclude energy sufficiency, however, or combine it with energy efficiency, obscuring its distinct benefits. Theoretical frameworks, such as avoid-shift-improve, lack clear definitions and boundaries between sufficiency and efficiency measures.This paper introduces the decentralization, right-sizing and reduction, utilization/timing and longevity, multifunctionality, substitution, and sharing (DRUMSS) framework to improve the modeling of energy sufficiency. DRUMSS provides steps for implementing sufficiency measures across demand-side sectors, identifying policy actions to achieve deep decarbonization. We present three case studies, from the United States, China, and France, to illustrate implementing the DRUMSS framework in diverse contexts. Broader context: Deep decarbonization requires a robust framework to model and realize energy sufficiency, which provides energy services that support global social foundations operating within ecological limits. Current models either exclude energy sufficiency or combine it with energy efficiency, obscuring its unique benefits. This paper introduces the decentralization, right-sizing and reduction, utilization/timing and longevity, multifunctionality, substitution, and sharing (DRUMSS) framework, which provides definitions and boundaries for modeling sufficiency. DRUMSS identifies ways to establish energy sufficiency and to estimate the associated climate mitigation potentials. The framework supports both the scientific study and practical application of energy sufficiency. Three international case studies describe practical actions and policy levers for furthering sufficiency. The DRUMSS framework requires interdisciplinary collaboration to augment the indicators and data needed to communicate the benefits of sufficiency measures.

Abstract China is rapidly expanding its alternative and non-conventional energy production capabilities. Although renewable electricity remains the focus, considerable investment has supported construction of coal liquefaction and coal gasification facilities in the desert steppes of north-central China, new coal mines in arid Inner Mongolia, and tight oil and gas extraction in the Ordos to supplement limited domestic supplies of oil and gas. At the same time, China is also facing severe drought and water scarcity in these same regions and in response has expanded various water supply technologies such as desalination and wastewater treatment. Recent government goals and measures for reducing energy and water consumption and increasing efficiency introduced in national policies, however, are poorly or not coordinated, resulting in contradictory objectives for which physical interlinkages are not well understood. This research intends to provide insights for future energy-water nexus management decisions in China, through systematic, comprehensive modeling of the water-energy nexus in China based on comprehensive, bottom-up technology characterizations. Existing studies fail to adequately characterize the details on specific technologies, nor do they comprehensively cover all energy sectors, including energy conversion for non-energy products. We developed integrated assessment (IA) capabilities to allow stakeholders to observe the tradeoffs between various technology options and policy decisions and to test hypotheses/premises in a scenario-driven environment. The results of our analysis underscore the growing interconnection between water and energy in China, the mixed trade-offs from developing low-carbon technologies such as renewable energy and inland nuclear, and the importance of water-energy nexus issues at the regional and local scales. This study lays the groundwork for an integrated resource policy planning process in China and provides an assessment methodology and research directions for future studies of the water-energy nexus. Finally, this study contributes to the water-energy nexus literature by providing systematic data and policy implications for China, where data are typically less accessible, as well as providing references for other regions in the world that are facing similar water and energy use and planning challenges.

In response to climate change, governments are developing policies to move toward ultra-low-energy or ‘zero-energy’ buildings (ZEBs). Policies, codes, and governance structures vary among regions, and there is no universally accepted definition of a ZEB. These variables make it difficult, for countries such as China that wish to set similar goals, to determine an optimum approach. This paper reviews ZEBs policies, programmes, and governance approaches in two jurisdictions that are leading ZEBs development: Denmark and the state of California in the United States. Different modes of governance (hierarchy: principal–agent relations, market: self organizing and network: independent actors) are examined specifically in relation to policy instruments (prescriptive, performance or outcome-based). The analysis highlights differences in institutional conditions and examines available data on energy performance resulting from a building policy framework. The purpose is to identify ZEBs governance and implementation deficits in China and analyse alternative governance approaches that could be employed in China, which is currently developing ZEBs targets and policies. Conclusions suggest that the ZEBs governance structure in China could benefit from widened participation by all societal actors involved in achieving ZEBs targets. China's ZEBs policies would benefit from employing a more balanced hybrid governance approach.

As concerns around water scarcity and energy security increase, so too has interest in the connections between these resources, through a concept called the water–energy nexus. Efforts to improve the integration of water and energy management and to understand their cross-sector relevance are growing. In particular, this paper develops a better empirical understanding on the extent to which governance settings hinder and/or enable policy coherence between the water and energy sectors through a comparative analysis of two case studies, namely, Los Angeles County, California, the United States, and the city of Beijing, China. This paper examines the extent to which the institutional context enables policy coordination within (vertically) and between (horizontally) the water and energy sectors in Beijing and Los Angeles. To do so, we propose a framework for analyzing policy integration for the water energy nexus based on environmental policy integration (EPI). The results highlight the multiple and flexible approaches of EPI in nexus governance, not least with regards to horizontal and vertical policy integration, but also in terms of explicit (i.e., intended) and implicit (i.e., unintended) coordination. The level of nexus-focused policy integration is highly dependent on the motivation at the local context and the criteria to evaluate policy success in each sector.

Abstract Cities are key to global greenhouse gas emissions management. To explore urban greenhouse gas peak pathways, a city-level Energy Consumption and Greenhouse Gas Emission Analysis model was developed by using Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning model framework. Using the city of Guangzhou as a case study, this research compiled a overall energy balance sheet of base year and simulated future CO2 emission trends from 2015 to 2030 under three scenarios. Results show that CO2 emissions in Guangzhou will peak around 2023 under the current policy scenario. In order to advance the CO2 emissions peak to 2020, the more stringent emissions-reduction policies and measures need to be adopted under the peaking scenario and enhanced peaking scenario, with the peak emission value of 125–127 Mt CO2e. The industrial sector is the only sector in which CO2 emissions have peaked in Guangzhou, the building sector’s CO2 emissions will not peak by 2030 under any of the three scenarios, while the transportation sector, which will contribute 50 percent of emission reduction potential, is the key to achieve its goal of peaking CO2 emissions on time. In the short term, stringent reduction strategies on the transportation, industrial, and power sectors are needed, including transport mode adjustment, industrial structure adjustment, electrification level improvement, clean-up transformation of thermal power, and energy efficiency improvement. However, in the long term, reduction strategies for the building sector, like energy efficiency improvement and large-scale application of renewable energy, will be essential for Guangzhou.

China accounts for half of the world’s annual coal consumption. Coal is the primary energy source for heating in urban areas, particularly in northern China. This causes significant challenges for urban air quality problems in China and greenhouse gases emissions. Urban district heating (DH) systems penetration is very high in northern China. It supplies space heating to more than 80% of urban buildings in the area. Unlike the electricity and transportation sectors, the heating sector has received little attention from policy makers and researchers in China, DH systems are an enabling infrastructure which facilitates energy efficiency improvements and the use of renewable energy sources. This study explores the dynamics and possibility to expand alternative energy sources (natural gas, biomass, direct geothermal heat, ground-source heat pump, municipal waste heat, industrial waste heat) for DH in China. We apply an analytical framework largely based on the multi-level perspective in socio-technical transitions theory, in which transitions are interpreted as the result of the functioning of niche, regime and landscape elements, and interactions between them. The study provides an integrated picture of the socio-technical structure and functioning of DH in China. The results show that an energy transition in Chinese DH systems has barely started. The system is characterised by stability of the coal-based DH regime, while a number of alternative niches are struggling to emerge. Among these, natural gas is the most successful example. However, at local level different niches present opportunities in terms of physical availability, economic viability and technical capacity to address changes in landscape pressures. A sustainable heat roadmap based on integrated energy planning and policy attention at the national level could be developed as one mechanism for instigating a much needed energy transition in DH in China. International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management, Vol 6 (2015)