Developing and assessing climate change mitigation technologies

政策制定者需要评估能源技术，并了解如何将新技术整合到现有能源系统中，以便在减少环境影响的情况下提供负担得起的能源。缺乏评估能源技术的系统工具阻碍了企业家提供有竞争力的适当能源解决方案的能力，也阻碍了政策制定者制定合理的成本效益政策的能力。对改进能源系统分析的需求与对改进技术的需求一样迫切。这项研究项目将研究风力发电和油砂开采这两种加拿大增长最快的能源的成本和环境影响。油砂开采技术正在深度融入加拿大的能源系统。设施的建设、运营和最终退役将对加拿大的经济和环境产生巨大而复杂的影响。每桶石油所需的能源和水以及二氧化碳排放量不能简单地从业务数据中估计，因为这些数据不包括钢铁和天然气等投入品的消耗产生的间接影响。这项研究将使用生命周期分析来提供一种系统的方法来分析生产的每个阶段所需的投入、产出和环境影响。当二氧化碳排放受到严格限制，以限制人为气候变化时，风力发电可以在全球能源供应中发挥重要作用。加拿大的风力发电使用量正在迅速增加。这项研究涉及大规模风电的两个方面，一是电力系统建模，以设计将大规模风电整合到现有电网的经济有效的方法；二是评估风力涡轮机对当地和全球气候的直接影响。

Policymakers need to assess energy technologies and to understand how new technologies can be integrated into existing energy systems in order to provide affordable energy with reduced environmental impact. The lack of systematic tools for assessing energy technologies frustrates the ability of entrepreneurs to deliver competitive and appropriate energy solutions and of policymakers to construct sound cost-effective policy. The need for improved energy system analysis is as pressing as the need for improved technologies. This research project will study the cost and environmental impacts wind power and oil sands extraction, two of Canada's fastest growing energy sources. Oil sands extraction technologies are becoming deeply integrated into Canada's energy system. Construction, operation, and eventual retirement of facilities will have large and complex impacts on Canada's economy and environment. The amount of energy and water required per barrel of oil produced, and the amount of CO2 emitted, cannot be simply estimated from operational data because such data does not include the indirect impacts arising from the consumption of inputs such as steel and natural gas. This research will use life-cycle analysis to provide a systematic method for analyzing the required inputs, outputs and environmental impacts for each stage of production. Wind power could play a substantial role in global energy supply when CO2 emissions are strongly constrained in order to limit anthropogenic climatic change. Canada's use of wind power is increasing quickly. This research addresses two aspects of large-scale wind power, first, electricity system modeling to design cost effective ways of integrating large-scale wind power into existing electricity grids; and second, assessment of the direct impact of wind turbines on local and global climate.