Climate Legislation Finds Bipartisan Support in Senate

Posted on October 19, 2009October 17, 2012

**Update 10/19** Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) are offering an alternative to the cap and trade portion of the Boxer-Kerry climate bill (described below). The senators are opposed to allowing carbon permits to be traded as commodities. However, they do support proposed caps on carbon emissions.

On October 27th, the US Senate’s Environment and Pulbic Works (EPW) Committee will begin hearings on a companion bill to the American Clean Energy and Securirty (ACES) Act (H.R. 2454) that passed the House over the summer. The Senate legislation, introduced by EPW Chair Barbara Boxewr (D-CA) and John Kerry (D-MA) on September 30th, is currently being refined by committee staff and is undergoing an analysis by the EPA that should be completed in time for the hearings. Conventional wisdom held that the Senate’s version of a massive climate change mitigation plan would be pushed until next calendar year, due to the already partisan environment created by the current health reform debate. However, Senator Boxer’s team is moving ahead with the legislation now. Further, initial drafts of the Senate bill have drawn bipartisan support. Last weekend, Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) and John Kerry co-authored a piece in the New York Times entitled “Yes We Can (Pass Climate Change Legislation).” In the article, Senator Graham makes the case that a climate change bill that promotes nuclear energy, more offshore oil and natural gas development and carbon sequestration from coal power plants would draw the 60 votes necessary to assure passage. The duo also articulated that climate change legislation should also establish limits on prices for carbon allowances provided under a cap-and-trade system, and a tax on energy-intensive goods from countries with less stringent emissions requirements than the United States.

Research investments were mentioned only briefly in the op-ed. House and Sente bills seem to ignore President Obama’s call for a $15 billion investment in research and development as part of a comprehensive climate change mitigation bill; a point made to Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) this week in a letter from the research community. Continue reading “Climate Legislation Finds Bipartisan Support in Senate”

FY10 Energy and Water Appropriations Approved

Posted on October 15, 2009October 17, 2012

**10/15 Update: Today, the Senate passed the Energy & Water (E&W) Appropriations Conference Report, sending the legislation to the President’s desk for signature. The E&W Appropriations bill is the third of nine to make it all of the way through the appropriations process. UW projects in the legislation and accounts of interest are noted below**

House and Senate conferees on the fiscal year 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations have approved a conference agreement. The conference agreement reconciles differences in the bills produced by the individual chambers and now must go back for final approval, which is expected. Within the legislation is support for two important University of Washington projects: $880,000 for the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, and $1 million for the Washington Biofuels Industry Development project. Additional items of importance in the conference report include:

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy- $2.2 billion, $314 million above 2009, to increase investments in technologies that use energy more effectively and produce clean, inexpensive energy from domestic sources.

Solar Energy: $225 million for research, development, and demonstration projects to make solar energy more affordable.
Biofuels: $220 million for grants to improve production of alternative fuels such as cellulosic ethanol
and biodiesel.

Office of Science- $4.9 billion, $131 million above 2009, for scientific research critical to addressing long-term energy needs. This funding, in addition to the $4.8 billion appropriated in fiscal year 2009 and $1.6 billion in the Recovery Act, exceeds the goals in the America COMPETES Act.

Basic Energy Sciences: $1.6 billion for basic research primarily on materials sciences and on chemical
sciences, energy biosciences and geosciences. This work places heavy emphasis on advancing the frontiers of using ever-faster tools, including $394 million in the Advanced Scientific Computing Research program, to better understand ever-smaller and more detailed phenomena.
Applied Research: $2.4 billion for Nuclear Physics, High Energy Physics, Biological and Environmental Research, and Fusion Energy Sciences.
Energy Innovation Hubs: Funding for three of the proposed eight Energy Innovation Hubs (at $22 million each) in the following areas: Fuels from Sunlight; Energy Efficient Building Systems Design; and Modeling and Simulation.
RE-ENERGYSE: Funding was not provided for the newly proposed RE-ENERGYSE education program.

Full Energy and Water Conference Report

Secretary Chu Announces Competition for ARRA Funded Research Fellowships

Posted on September 30, 2009October 17, 2012

Washington, DC – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that up to $12.5 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be awarded in early 2010 to support at least 80 graduate fellowships to U.S. students pursuing advanced degrees in science, mathematics, and engineering through the newly created Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Fellowship program. The goal of the fellowship program is to encourage outstanding students to pursue graduate degrees in physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, engineering, and environmental and computer sciences – fields that will prepare students for careers that can make significant contributions in discovery driven science and science for national needs in energy and the environment.

“Training the next generation of U.S. scientists and engineers is critical to our future energy security and economic competitiveness,” said Secretary Chu. “This Fellowship is part of the Administration’s effort to encourage students to direct their talents towards careers in science and our nation’s next technology revolution.”

To be eligible for the Fellowship, applicants must be U.S. citizens and currently a first or second year graduate student enrolled at a U.S. academic institution, or an undergraduate senior who will be enrolled as a first year graduate student by the fall of 2010. Applicants must be pursuing graduate study and research in the physical, biological, engineering and computational sciences. Interested students can apply online at: http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/SCGF.html

Each fellowship award will be $50,500 per year for three years to provide support for tuition, living expenses, research materials and travel to research conferences. Fellowships will be awarded on the basis of peer review. Applicants may begin submitting applications on September 30, 2009. Completed applications are due November 30, 2009.

ARPA-E Seeks Stakeholder Input

Posted on September 8, 2009October 17, 2012

The Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) is seeking public and stakeholder input on 1) programmatic areas well suited for support by ARPA-E and 2) specific scientific and technological opportunities to overcome key technological roadblocks to the development of widely market deployable transformational technologies relevant to the ARPA-E mission. The information collected through this process will assist ARPA-E in developing potential programs and funding opportunities.

Deadline for Comment: September 25, 2009

Submission Method: Responses are to be submitted as email attachments sent to Submission Method: Responses are to be submitted as email attachments sent to arpa-e-rfi@hq.doe.gov .

Full Notice

NSF Announces Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) Funding

Posted on August 14, 2009October 17, 2012

The Directorate for Engineering at the National Science Foundation has established the Office of Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) to serve a critical role in focusing on important emerging areas in a timely manner. The EFRI Office is launching a new funding opportunity for interdisciplinary teams of researchers to embark on rapidly advancing frontiers of fundamental engineering research. For this solicitation, they will consider proposals that aim to investigate emerging frontiers in the following two specific research areas: (1) Renewable Energy Storage (RESTOR), and (2) Science in Energy and Environmental Design (SEED): Engineering Sustainable Buildings. This solicitation will be coordinated with NSF Directorates listed above, the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EFRI seeks proposals with transformative ideas that represent an opportunity for a significant shift in fundamental engineering knowledge with a strong potential for long term impact on national needs or a grand challenge. The proposals must also meet the detailed requirements delineated in this solicitation.

INFORMATION WEBCAST: The EFRI Office plans to hold an information workshop on September17, 2009, to answer any questions about the EFRI Office and this solicitation. Details will be posted on the EFRI website (www.nsf.gov/eng/efri) as they become available.