Energy
Breaking Down The Tesoro Refinery Closure – Part 1
Earlier this month, after a year-long unsuccessful effort to sell the facility, Tesoro announced they were shutting down their refinery while continuing to offer it for sale. The question on everyone’s mind—what does this mean for Hawai‘i? This 3-part series by UHERO Graduate Assistants Iman Nasseri and Sherilyn Wee attempts to answer those questions. Part […]
Read MoreThe Price of Paradise Revisited
In his State of the State address to the Hawaii Legislature on January 22, 2013, Governor Abercrombie proposed raising the hourly minimum wage in Hawaii from $7.25 to $8.50, a 20.7% increase. Noting that the minimum wage had not been raised in six years, the Governor was implicitly acknowledging Hawaii’s high cost of living. The […]
Read MoreHawaii’s Proposed 400MW Wind Energy Project Explained
HOW WILL THE PROPOSED 400 MW WIND ENERGY PROJECT CONTRIBUTE TO THE STATE’S RENEWABLE ENERGY GOALS? Hawaii has one of the most stringent Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS)* policies in the country as well as the highest electricity rates due to dependence on oil for electricity generation (Coffman et al., 2012). As such, renewable energy technologies […]
Read MoreStatewide Economy and Electricity-Sector Models for Assessment of Hawai‘i Energy Policies
This paper uses both a “top-down” and “bottom-up” economic model to asses the cost and greenhouse implications of various energy and environmental alternatives. The Hawai‘i Computable Generable Equilibrium Model (H-CGE) is a “top-down,” economy-wide model that captures the interaction between both producers and consumers, including full price effects between sectors. The Hawai‘i Electricity Model (HELM) […]
Read MoreAn Assessment Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions-Weighted Clean Energy Standards
Published in the journal Energy Policy, this paper quantifies the relative cost-savings of utilizing a greenhouse gas emissions-weighted Clean Energy Standard (CES) in comparison to a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). Using a bottom-up electricity sector model for Hawaii, this paper demonstrates that a policy that gives “clean energy” credit to electricity technologies based on their […]
Read MoreQ & A: Hawaii’s Green Energy Bank
1. HAWAII’S STATE LEGISLATORS HAVE BEEN CONSIDERING A PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH A STATE-RUN BANK TO FUND CLEAN ENERGY PROJECTS. HOW IS THIS BANK SUPPOSED TO WORK. House bill 1033 would establish a clean energy bank. The bill has been approved by the Senate’s Energy and Environment Committee. The state-run bank would make low-interest loans to […]
Read MoreDr. Makena Coffman named new Director of Energy and Greenhouse Gas Solutions (EGGS)
UHERO is pleased to introduce our new Director of Energy and Greenhouse Gas Solutions (EGGS), Dr. Makena Coffman. Dr. Coffman is a UHERO Research Fellow and Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Planning. She brings expertise in greenhouse gas reduction strategies, sustainability planning, and computable general equilibrium modeling.
Read MoreDr. Denise Konan participates on an APEC panel on PBS Hawaii’s INSIGHTS
The INSIGHTS ON PBS HAWAII program will feature a discussion about the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit that will take place in Honolulu this November. A panel of experts will delve into the economic, environmental and social issues that APEC members will explore at the summit, and what the high-profile event means for Hawaii as […]
Read MoreUHERO EGGS Team Presents On Capitol Hill
March 27 – 29, 2011: Members of the UHERO EGGS team went to Washington DC to present at a symposium and Capitol Hill poster session hosted by the National Science Foundation supported program, SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities). The 2011 Washington Symposium and Capitol Hill Poster Session theme was “Students as […]
Read More