Energy development is the effort to provide sufficient primary energy sources and secondary energy forms for supply, cost, impact on air pollution and water pollution, mitigation of climate change with renewable energy.

Technologically advanced societies have become increasingly dependent on external energy sources for transportation, the production of many manufactured goods, and the delivery of energy services. This energy allows people who can afford the cost to live under otherwise unfavorable climatic conditions through the use of heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning. Level of use of external energy sources differs across societies, as do the climate, convenience, levels of traffic congestion, pollution and availability of domestic energy sources.

Renewable sources

Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable (naturally replenished.) Renewable energy is an alternative to fossil fuels and nuclear power, and was commonly called ''alternative energy'' in the 1970s and 1980s. In 2008, about 19% of global final energy consumption came from renewables, with 13% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.2% from hydroelectricity. New renewables (small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels) accounted for another 2.7% and are growing very rapidly. The share of renewables in electricity generation is around 18%, with 15% of global electricity coming from hydroelectricity and 3% from new renewables.

Wind power is growing at the rate of 30% annually, with a worldwide installed capacity of 158 gigawatts (GW) in 2009, and is widely used in Europe, Asia, and the United States. At the end of 2009, cumulative global photovoltaic (PV) installations surpassed 21 GW and PV power stations are popular in Germany and Spain. Solar thermal power stations operate in the USA and Spain, and the largest of these is the 354 megawatt (MW) SEGS power plant in the Mojave Desert. The world's largest geothermal power installation is The Geysers in California, with a rated capacity of 750 MW. Brazil has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18% of the country's automotive fuel. Ethanol fuel is also widely available in the USA.

Climate change concerns, coupled with high oil prices, peak oil, and increasing government support, are driving increasing renewable energy legislation, incentives and commercialization. New government spending, regulation and policies helped the industry weather the global financial crisis better than many other sectors. Scientists have advanced a plan to power 100% of the world's energy with wind, hydroelectric, and solar power by the year 2030, recommending renewable energy subsidies and a price on carbon reflecting its cost for flood and related expenses.

While many renewable energy projects are large-scale, renewable technologies are also suited to rural and remote areas, where energy is often crucial in human development. Globally, an estimated 3 million households get power from small solar PV systems. Micro-hydro systems configured into village-scale or county-scale mini-grids serve many areas. More than 30 million rural households get lighting and cooking from biogas made in household-scale digesters. Biomass cookstoves are used by 160 million households.

Wind

Wind power harnesses the power of the wind to propel the blades of wind turbines. These turbines cause the rotation of magnets, which creates electricity. Wind towers are usually built together on wind farms. Wind power is growing at the rate of 30% annually, with a worldwide installed capacity of 158 gigawatts (GW) in 2009, and is widely used in Europe, Asia, and the United States.

At the end of 2010, worldwide nameplate capacity of wind-powered generators was 197 gigawatts (GW). Energy production was 430 TWh, which is about 2.5% of worldwide electricity usage. Several countries have achieved relatively high levels of wind power penetration, such as 21% of stationary electricity production in Denmark, 18% in Portugal, 16% in Spain, 14% in Ireland and 9% in Germany in 2010. As of 2011, 83 countries around the world are using wind power on a commercial basis.

Many of the largest operational onshore wind farms are located in the USA. As of November 2010, the Roscoe Wind Farm is the largest onshore wind farm in the world, with a capacity of 781.5 MW of power, followed by the Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center (735.5 MW). As of November 2010, the Thanet Offshore Wind Project in United Kingdom is the largest offshore wind farm in the world at 300 MW, followed by Horns Rev II (209 MW) in Denmark.

Hydroelectric

In hydro energy, the gravitational descent of a river is compressed from a long run to a single location with a dam or a flume. This creates a location where concentrated pressure and flow can be used to turn turbines or water wheels, which drive a mechanical mill or an electric generator.

In some cases with hydroelectric dams, there are unexpected results. One study shows that a hydroelectric dam in the Amazon has 3.6 times larger greenhouse effect per kW•h than electricity production from oil, due to large scale emission of methane from decaying organic material, though this is most significant as river valleys are initially flooded, and are of much less consequence for more boreal dams. This effect applies in particular to dams created by simply flooding a large area, without first clearing it of vegetation. There are however investigations into underwater turbines that do not require a dam. And pumped-storage hydroelectricity can use water reservoirs at different altitudes to store wind and solar power.

Solar

Solar power involves using solar cells to convert sunlight into electricity, using sunlight hitting solar thermal panels to convert sunlight to heat water or air, using sunlight hitting a parabolic mirror to heat water (producing steam), or using sunlight entering windows for passive solar heating of a building. It would be advantageous to place solar panels in the regions of highest solar radiation.

At the end of 2009, cumulative global photovoltaic (PV) installations surpassed 21 GW and PV power stations are popular in Germany and Spain. Solar thermal power stations operate in the USA and Spain, and the largest of these is the 354 megawatt (MW) SEGS power plant in the Mojave Desert.

China is increasing worldwide silicon wafer capacity for photovoltaics to 2,000 metric tons by July 2008, and over 6,000 metric tons by the end of 2010. Significant international investment capital is flowing into China to support this opportunity. China is building large subsidized off-the-grid solar-powered cities in Huangbaiyu and Dongtan Eco City. Much of the design was done by Americans such as William McDonough.

Many solar photovoltaic power stations have been built, mainly in Europe. As of December 2011, the largest photovoltaic (PV) power plants in the world are the Golmud Solar Park (China, 200 MW), Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant (Canada, 97 MW), Montalto di Castro Photovoltaic Power Station (Italy, 84.2 MW), Finsterwalde Solar Park (Germany, 80.7 MW), Okhotnykovo Solar Park (Ukraine, 80 MW), Lieberose Photovoltaic Park (Germany, 71.8 MW), Rovigo Photovoltaic Power Plant (Italy, 70 MW), Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park (Spain, 60 MW), and the Strasskirchen Solar Park (Germany, 54 MW).

Agricultural biomass

Biomass production involves using garbage or other renewable resources such as corn or other vegetation to generate electricity. When garbage decomposes, the methane produced is captured in pipes and later burned to produce electricity. Vegetation and wood can be burned directly to generate energy, like fossil fuels, or processed to form alcohols. Brazil has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18% of the country's automotive fuel. Ethanol fuel is also widely available in the USA.

Vegetable oil is generated from sunlight, H₂O, and CO₂ by plants. It is safer to use and store than gasoline or diesel as it has a higher flash point. Straight vegetable oil works in diesel engines if it is heated first. Vegetable oil can also be transesterified to make biodiesel, which burns like normal diesel.

Geothermal

Geothermal energy harnesses the heat energy present underneath the Earth. Two wells are drilled. One well injects water into the ground to provide water. The hot rocks heat the water to produce steam. The steam that shoots back up the other hole(s) is purified and is used to drive turbines, which power electric generators. When the water temperature is below the boiling point of water a binary system is used. A low boiling point liquid is used to drive a turbine and generator in a closed system similar to a refrigeration unit running in reverse. There are also natural sources of geothermal energy: some can come from volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, and steam vents. The world's largest geothermal power installation is The Geysers in California, with a rated capacity of 750 MW.

Tidal

Tidal power can be extracted from Moon-gravity-powered tides by locating a water turbine in a tidal current, or by building impoundment pond dams that admit-or-release water through a turbine. The turbine can turn an electrical generator, or a gas compressor, that can then store energy until needed. Coastal tides are a source of clean, free, renewable, and sustainable energy.

Fossil fuels

Fossil fuels sources burn coal or hydrocarbon fuels, which are the remains of the decomposition of plants and animals. There are three main types of fossil fuels: coal, petroleum, and natural gas. Another fossil fuel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), is principally derived from the production of natural gas. Heat from burning fossil fuel is used either directly for space heating and process heating, or converted to mechanical energy for vehicles, industrial processes, or electrical power generation.

Greenhouse gas emissions result from fossil fuel-based electricity generation. Currently governments subsidize fossil fuels by an estimated $500 billion a year.

Nuclear

Fission

Nuclear power stations use nuclear fission to generate energy by the reaction of uranium-235 inside a nuclear reactor. The reactor uses uranium rods, the atoms of which are split in the process of fission, releasing a large amount of energy. The process continues as a chain reaction with other nuclei. The energy heats water to create steam, which spins a turbine generator, producing electricity.

Depending on the type of fission fuel considered, estimates for existing supply at known usage rates varies from several decades for the currently popular Uranium-235 to thousands of years for uranium-238. At the present rate of use, there are (as of 2007) about 70 years left of known uranium-235 reserves economically recoverable at a uranium price of US$ 130/kg. The nuclear industry argue that the cost of fuel is a minor cost factor for fission power, more expensive, more difficult to extract sources of uranium could be used in the future, such as lower-grade ores, and if prices increased enough, from sources such as granite and seawater. Increasing the price of uranium would have little effect on the overall cost of nuclear power; a doubling in the cost of natural uranium would increase the total cost of nuclear power by 5 percent. On the other hand, if the price of natural gas was doubled, the cost of gas-fired power would increase by about 60 percent.

Opponents on the other hand argue that the correlation between price and production is not linear, but as the ores' concentration becomes smaller, the difficulty (energy and resource consumption are increasing, while the yields are decreasing) of extraction rises very fast, and that the assertion that a higher price will yield more uranium is overly optimistic; for example a rough estimate predicts that the extraction of uranium from granite will consume at least 70 times more energy than what it will produce in a reactor. As many as eleven countries have depleted their uranium resources, and only Canada has mines left that produce better than 1% concentration ore. Seawater seems to be equally dubious as a source.

Nuclear meltdowns and other reactor accidents, such as the Fukushima I nuclear accident (2011), Three Mile Island accident (1979) and the Chernobyl disaster (1986), have caused much public concern. Research is being done to lessen the known problems of current reactor technology by developing automated and passively safe reactors. Historically, however, coal and hydropower power generation have both been the cause of more deaths per energy unit produced than nuclear power generation.

Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear technology which may happen from nation to nation or through other black market channels, including nuclear power plants and related technology including nuclear weapons.

The long-term radioactive waste storage problems of nuclear power have not been solved. Several countries have considered using underground repositories. Nuclear waste takes up little space compared to wastes from the chemical industry which remain toxic indefinitely. Spent fuel rods are now stored in concrete casks close to the nuclear reactors. The amounts of waste could be reduced in several ways. Both nuclear reprocessing and breeder reactors could reduce the amounts of waste. Subcritical reactors or fusion reactors could greatly reduce the time the waste has to be stored. Subcritical reactors may also be able to do the same to already existing waste. The only long-term way of dealing with waste today is by geological storage.

At present, nuclear energy is in decline, according to a 2007 World Nuclear Industry Status Report presented by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament. The report outlines that the proportion of nuclear energy in power production has decreased in 21 out of 31 countries, with five fewer functioning nuclear reactors than five years ago. There are currently 32 nuclear power plants under construction or in the pipeline, 20 fewer than at the end of the 1990s.

Thorium can be used as fuel in a nuclear reactor. A thorium fuel cycle offers several potential advantages over a uranium fuel cycle including much greater abundance on Earth, superior physical and nuclear properties of the fuel, enhanced proliferation resistance, and reduced nuclear waste production. Nobel laureate Carlo Rubbia at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research), has worked on developing the use of thorium as an alternative to uranium in reactors. Rubbia states that a tonne of thorium can produce as much energy as 200 tonnes of uranium, or 3,500,000 tonnes of coal. One of the early pioneers of the technology was U.S. physicist Alvin Weinberg at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, who helped develop a working nuclear plant using liquid fuel in the 1960s.

Fusion

Fusion power could solve many of the problems of fission power (the technology mentioned above) but, despite research having started in the 1950s, no commercial fusion reactor is expected before 2050. Many technical problems remain unsolved. Proposed fusion reactors commonly use deuterium, an isotope of hydrogen, as fuel and in most current designs also lithium. Assuming a fusion energy output equal to the current global output and that this does not increase in the future, then the known current lithium reserves would last 3000 years, lithium from sea water would last 60 million years, and a more complicated fusion process using only deuterium from sea water would have fuel for 150 billion years.

Cost by source

The following chart does not include the external, weather-related costs of using fossil fuels.

Large energy subsidies are present in many countries (Barker ''et al.'', 2001:567-568). Currently governments subsidize fossil fuels by $557 billion per year. Economic theory indicates that the optimal policy would be to remove coal mining and burning subsidies and replace them with optimal taxes. Global studies indicate that even without introducing taxes, subsidy and trade barrier removal at a sectoral level would improve efficiency and reduce environmental damage. Removal of these subsidies would substantially reduce GHG emissions and stimulate economic growth.

Increased energy efficiency

Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal of efforts to reduce the amount of energy required to provide products and services. For example, insulating a home allows a building to use less heating and cooling energy to achieve and maintain a comfortable temperature. Installing fluorescent lights or natural skylights reduces the amount of energy required to attain the same level of illumination compared to using traditional incandescent light bulbs. Compact fluorescent lights use two-thirds less energy and may last 6 to 10 times longer than incandescent lights. Improvements in energy efficiency are most often achieved by adopting a more efficient technology or production process.

There are various motivations to improve energy efficiency. Reducing energy use reduces energy costs and may result in a financial cost saving to consumers if the energy savings offset any additional costs of implementing an energy efficient technology. Reducing energy use is also seen as a key solution to the problem of reducing emissions. According to the International Energy Agency, improved energy efficiency in buildings, industrial processes and transportation could reduce the world's energy needs in 2050 by one third, and help control global emissions of greenhouse gases.

Energy efficiency and renewable energy are said to be the ''twin pillars'' of sustainable energy policy. In many countries energy efficiency is also seen to have a national security benefit because it can be used to reduce the level of energy imports from foreign countries and may slow down the rate at which domestic energy resources are depleted.

Transmission

While new sources of energy are only rarely discovered or made possible by new technology, distribution technology continually evolves. The use of fuel cells in cars, for example, is an anticipated delivery technology. This section presents some of the more common delivery technologies that have been important to historic energy development. They all rely in some way on the energy sources listed in the previous section.

Water

Fossil fuels

Shipping is a flexible delivery technology that is used in the whole range of energy development regimes from primitive to highly advanced. Currently, coal, petroleum and their derivatives are delivered by shipping via boat, rail, or road. Petroleum and natural gas may also be delivered via pipeline and coal via a Slurry pipeline. Refined hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline and LPG may also be delivered via aircraft. Natural gas pipelines must maintain a certain minimum pressure to function correctly. Ethanol's corrosive properties make it harder to build ethanol pipelines. The higher costs of ethanol transportation and storage are often prohibitive.

Electricity

Electricity grids are the networks used to transmit and distribute power from production source to end user, when the two may be hundreds of kilometres away. Sources include electrical generation plants such as a nuclear reactor, coal burning power plant, etc. A combination of sub-stations, transformers, towers, cables, and piping are used to maintain a constant flow of electricity. Grids may suffer from transient blackouts and brownouts, often due to weather damage. During certain extreme space weather events solar wind can interfere with transmissions. Grids also have a predefined carrying capacity or load that cannot safely be exceeded. When power requirements exceed what's available, failures are inevitable. To prevent problems, power is then rationed.

Industrialised countries such as Canada, the US, and Australia are among the highest per capita consumers of electricity in the world, which is possible thanks to a widespread electrical distribution network. The US grid is one of the most advanced, although infrastructure maintenance is becoming a problem. CurrentEnergy provides a realtime overview of the electricity supply and demand for California, Texas, and the Northeast of the US. African countries with small scale electrical grids have a correspondingly low annual per capita usage of electricity. One of the most powerful power grids in the world supplies power to the state of Queensland, Australia.

Storage

Methods of energy storage have been developed, which transform electrical energy into forms of potential energy. A method of energy storage may be chosen on the basis of stability, ease of transport, ease of energy release, or ease of converting free energy from the natural form to the stable form.

Chemical

Some natural forms of energy are found in stable chemical compounds such as fossil fuels. Most systems of chemical energy storage result from biological activity, which store energy in chemical bonds. Man-made forms of chemical energy storage include hydrogen fuel, synthetic hydrocarbon fuel, batteries and explosives such as cordite and dynamite.

Gravitational and hydroelectric

Dams can be used to store energy, by using pumped-storage hydroelectricity, excess energy to pump water into the reservoir. When electrical energy is required, the process is reversed. The water then turns a turbine, generating electricity. Hydroelectric power is currently an important part of the world's energy supply, generating one-fifth of the world's electricity.

Thermal

There are several technologies to store heat. Thermal energy from the sun, for example, can be stored in a reservoir or in the ground for daily or seasonal use. Thermal energy for cooling can be stored in ice. Many thermal power plants are set up near coal or oil fields. The thermal power plant is used since fuel is burnt to produce heat energy, which is converted into electrical energy .

Compressed air

Energy may also be stored in pressurized gases or alternatively in a vacuum. Compressed air, for example, may be used to operate vehicles and power tools. Large-scale compressed air energy storage facilities are used to smooth out demands on electricity generation by providing energy during peak hours and storing energy during off-peak hours. All storage systems save on generating capacity since primary energy sources only need to meet average consumption rather than peak consumption. A critical factor in design of compressed-air storage systems is the heat evolved during compression; a large amount of heat is given off when gases are compressed, and subsequent expansion requires the gas to resorb this heat. In spite of the large cyclic efficiency loss in simple schemes, compressed air storage has still been applied in electrical grid applications, where low-cost off-peak baseload energy can be stored for later release during peaks.

Electrical capacitance

Electrical energy may be stored in capacitors. Capacitors are often used to produce high intensity releases of energy (such as a camera's flash).

Hydrogen

Hydrogen can be manufactured at roughly 77 percent thermal efficiency by the method of steam reforming of natural gas. When manufactured by this method it is a derivative fuel like gasoline; when produced by electrolysis of water, it is a form of chemical energy storage as are storage batteries, though hydrogen is the more versatile storage mode since there are two options for its conversion to useful work: (1) a fuel cell can convert the chemicals hydrogen and oxygen into water, and in the process, produce electricity, or (2) hydrogen can be burned (less efficiently than in a fuel cell) in an internal combustion engine.

Vehicles

Fossil fuels

Petroleum, coal and natural gas are used to power most transportation and buildings.

Batteries

:''Main articles'': battery, battery electric vehicle'' Batteries are used to store energy in a chemical form. As an alternative energy, batteries can be used to store energy in battery electric vehicles. Battery electric vehicles can be charged from the grid when the vehicle is not in use. Because the energy is derived from electricity, battery electric vehicles make it possible to use other forms of alternative energy such as wind, solar, geothermal, nuclear, or hydroelectric.

Compressed air

Compressed air vehicles would be propelled entirely or partly by energy stored in compressed air. However, cyclic efficiency is low since it is difficult to store the heat of compression and return it to the air during expansion. Certain specialized vehicles, for example, mine locomotives, have been built and used for many years.

Sustainability

The environmental movement emphasizes sustainability of energy use and development. Renewable energy is sustainable in its production; the available supply will not be diminished for the foreseeable future - millions or billions of years. "Sustainability" also refers to the ability of the environment to cope with waste products, especially air pollution. Sources which have no direct waste products (such as wind, solar, and hydropower) are seen as ideal in this regard.

Fossil fuels such as petroleum, coal, and natural gas are not renewable. For example, the timing of worldwide peak oil production is being actively debated but it has already happened in some countries. Fossil fuels also make up the bulk of the world's current primary energy sources. With global demand for energy growing, the need to adopt alternative energy sources is also growing. Fossil fuels are also a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, leading to concerns about global warming if consumption is not reduced.

Energy conservation is an alternative or complementary process to energy development. It reduces the demand for energy by using it more efficiently.

Resilience

Some observers contend that the much talked about idea of "energy independence" is an unrealistic and opaque concept. They offer "energy resilience" as a more sensible goal and more aligned with economic, security and energy realities. The notion of resilience in energy was detailed in the 1982 book Brittle Power: Energy Strategy for National Security. The authors argued that simply switching to domestic energy would be no more secure inherently because the true weakness is the interdependent and vulnerable energy infrastructure of the United States. Key aspects such as gas lines and the electrical power grid are centralized and easily susceptible to major disruption. They conclude that a "resilient energy supply" is necessary for both national security and the environment. They recommend a focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy that is more decentralized.

More recently former Intel Corporation Chairman and CEO Andrew Grove has touted energy resilience, arguing that complete independence is infeasible given the global market for energy. He describes energy resilience as the ability to adjust to interruptions in the supply of energy. To this end he suggests the U.S. make greater use of electricity. Electricity can be produced from a variety of sources. A diverse energy supply will be less impacted by the disruption in supply of any one source. He reasons that another feature of electrification is that electricity is "sticky" – meaning the electricity produced in the U.S. is more likely to stay there because it cannot be transported overseas. According to Grove, a key aspect of advancing electrification and energy resilience will be converting the U.S. automotive fleet from gasoline-powered to electric-powered. This, in turn, will require the modernization and expansion of the electrical power grid. As organizations such as the Reform Institute have pointed out, advancements associated with the developing smart grid would facilitate the ability of the grid to absorb vehicles en masse connecting to it to charge their batteries.

Future

Extrapolations from current knowledge to the future offer a choice of energy futures. Some predictions parallel the Malthusian catastrophe hypothesis. Numerous are complex models based scenarios as pioneered by ''Limits to Growth''. Modeling approaches offer ways to analyze diverse strategies, and hopefully find a road to rapid and sustainable development of humanity. Short term energy crises are also a concern of energy development. Some extrapolations lack plausibility, particularly when they predict a continual increase in oil consumption.

Energy production usually requires an energy investment. Drilling for oil or building a wind power plant requires energy. The fossil fuel ''resources'' (see above) that are left are often increasingly difficult to extract and convert. They may thus require increasingly higher energy investments. If the investment is greater than the energy produced, then the fossil resource is no longer an energy source. This means that a large part of the fossil fuel resources and especially the non-conventional ones cannot be used for energy production today. Such resources may still be exploited economically in order to produce raw materials for plastics, fertilizers or even transportation fuel but now more energy is consumed than produced. (They then become similar to ordinary ''mining'' reserves, economically recoverable but not net positive energy sources.) New technology may ameliorate this problem if it can lower the energy investment required to extract and convert the resources, although ultimately basic physics sets limits that cannot be exceeded.

Between 1950 and 1984, as the Green Revolution transformed agriculture around the globe, world grain production increased by 250%. The energy for the Green Revolution was provided by fossil fuels in the form of fertilizers (natural gas), pesticides (oil), and hydrocarbon fueled irrigation. The peaking of world hydrocarbon production (peak oil) may lead to significant changes, and require sustainable methods of production.

See also

References

Sources

Serra, J. "Alternative Fuel Resource Development", Clean and Green Fuels Fund, (2006).

Bilgen, S. and K. Kaygusuz, ''Renewable Energy for a Clean and Sustainable Future'', Energy Sources 26, 1119 (2004).

''Energy analysis of Power Systems'', UIC Nuclear Issues Briefing Paper 57 (2004).

Silvestre, B. S., Dalcol, P. R. T. Geographical proximity and innovation: Evidences from the Campos Basin oil & gas industrial agglomeration — Brazil. Technovation (2009),

Journals

''Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization and Environmental Effects''

''Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning and Policy''

''International Journal of Green Energy''

External links

Bureau of Land Management 2012 Renewable Energy Priority Projects

Energypedia - a wiki about renewable energies in the context of development cooperation

Hidden Health and Environmental Costs Of Energy Production and Consumption In U.S.

RECaBS REcalculator Interactive Renewable Energy Calculator — compare renewable energy to conventional energy sources

Category:Applied sciences Category:Energy policy Category:Technology development

ca:Font d'energia de:Energiequelle es:Fuente de energía eo:Energifonto fr:Source d'énergie ko:에너지 개발 hu:Energiafejlesztés nn:Energikjelde ru:Энергетика sl:Energija in razvoj sr:Извори енергије sv:Energikälla tr:Enerji kaynakları zh:能源开发

Name	Don Young
State	Alaska
District	At-large
Party	Republican
Term start	March 6, 1973
Preceded	Nick Begich
Office2	Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
Term start2	2001
Term end2	2007
Predecessor2	Bud Shuster
Successor2	Jim Oberstar
Office3	Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee
Term start3	1995
Term end3	2001
Predecessor3	George Miller
Successor3	James V. Hansen
Office4	Member of the Alaska Senate from the I district
Term start4	January 11, 1971
Term end4	March 6, 1973
Predecessor4	Paul B. Haggland
Successor4	George C. Silides
Office5	Member of the Alaska House of Representatives from the 16th district
Term start5	January 23, 1967
Term end5	January 10, 1971
Office6	Member of the Fort Yukon City Council
Term start6	1960
Term end6	1968
Birth date	June 09, 1933
Birth place	Meridian, California
Alma mater	California State University, Chico
Residence	Fort Yukon, Alaska
Spouse	Lula (Fredson) Young, deceased August 1, 2009
Religion	Episcopalian
Occupation	mariner, construction worker, miner, educator
Branch	United States Army
Serviceyears	1955-1957 }}

Donald Edwin "Don" Young (born June 9, 1933) is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1973. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Young is the 6th most senior U.S. Representative and the 2nd most senior Republican Representative, as well as the 2nd most senior Republican in Congress as a whole. Upon the defeat of Senator Ted Stevens, Young became the senior member of the Alaska congressional delegation.

Early life, education, and pre-political career

Young was born in Meridian, Sutter County, California. He earned an associate's degree in education from Yuba College in 1952 and a bachelor's degree from Chico State College in 1958. He served in the Army from 1955 to 1957.

Young moved to Alaska in 1959, not long after it became a state. He eventually settled in Fort Yukon, a 700-person city on the Yukon River, seven miles (11 km) above the Arctic Circle in Alaska’s central interior region. He made a living in construction, fishing, trapping and gold mining. He captained a tugboat and ran a barge operation to deliver products and supplies to villages along the Yukon River. He still holds his mariner's license today. During the winter, he taught fifth grade at the local Bureau of Indian Affairs elementary school.

Early political career

Young began his political career in 1964 when he was elected mayor of Fort Yukon. After only one term, he was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives and served two terms before being elected to the Alaska Senate in 1970.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

1973-1974

Alaska's at-large congressman, Democrat Nick Begich, disappeared in a plane crash on October 16, 1972. He was re-elected to the House that November, but was declared dead on December 29. Young, who had been the Republican candidate against Begich in November, ran in the special election in March 1973 and won with just 51% of the vote against Democrat Emil Notti. He won a full term in 1974 with just 54% of the vote. He credits his victory to his leadership of the fight for the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline System.

1976-2006

He won re-election with at least 55% of vote all but three other times in his career (1990, 1992, and 2008). In 1982 and 1984, he defeated Nick Begich's wife, Pegge Begich, with 55% and 57% respectively. In 1990 he won re-election with just 52% against John Devens, the Mayor of Valdez. In 1992, he defeated Devens again, this time with just 47%: the lowest winning percentage of his career and the only time he won without a majority vote. Young's largest winning percentage was in 2002 (75%), and the most votes he got was in 2004 (213,216).

2008

;Republican primary In light of many of the controversies, incumbent Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell announced he would run against Young in the August 26, 2008 Republican primary. Parnell was strongly supported by Gov. Sarah Palin, the Club for Growth, and many other organizations that opposed what they viewed to be corrupt behavior by Young. This was the first primary since he was first elected in which Young faced a strong challenge.

Young received the endorsement of Mike Huckabee's political action committee, Huck PAC, in June 2008. After a storm of negative reaction, Huckabee explained on the Huck PAC blog that the endorsement was due in part to Young's endorsement and steadfast support of Huckabee during the 2008 Republican presidential primaries.

Final results on September 18 showed Young winning by 304 votes (0.28%), and Parnell announced that he would not seek a recount. Prior to the announcement of the unofficial results, both candidates had said that they would request a recount if they lost. The state of Alaska pays the costs of recounts when the difference is within a half percent, as it was in this primary election.

;General election Young, plagued by questions about his ethics, faced a strong challenge from Democrat Ethan Berkowitz, the 46-year-old former minority leader in the Alaska House of Representatives.

The initial results from the general election showed Young leading the race by a slim margin. He got just 50%of the vote compared to Berkowitz's 45% and 5% for Don Wright, the candidate of the Alaskan Independence Party. Berkowitz himself conceded defeat on November 18, 2008, after counting of absentee and provisional ballots had mostly been completed and Young had a clearly insurmountable lead. Berkowitz received more votes in 2008 than any Democrat who had ever run against Young for Congress, and the 2008 race was the closest any Democrat had come to unseating Young since 1990, when John Devens of Valdez received 48% of the vote.

2010

Young announced in 2009 that he will be seeking his 20th term. Young won the Republican primary with 70% of the vote against Sheldon Fisher and John R. Cox.He was challenged by Democratic nominee State Representative Harry Crawford. Young defeated him with 69% of the vote.

Tenure

Young is the seventh longest-serving House member, and the second most senior Republican (behind Rep. Bill Young of Florida). Due to his long tenure in the House and that of former Senator Ted Stevens, Alaska is considered to have clout in national politics far beyond its small population (it has long been one of the smallest states in population and is currently 47th, ahead of only North Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming). He is often called "Alaska's third senator." Young chaired the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee from 2001 to 2007. He also chaired the Resources Committee from the 1995 Republican takeover of the House until 2001. However, since Young was stripped of his seniority shortly after the 2008 election due to his role in several controversies, he no longer holds the same influence.

Young's voting record is relatively moderate by Republican standards. He has a lifetime rating of 77 from the American Conservative Union. He most often crosses lines on issues affecting labor. He was one of a small number of Republicans to vote against the Teamwork for Employees and Managers Act of 1995, some free trade agreements, and was one of only 13 Republican congressmen to vote for the Employee Free Choice Act in 2007. His voting record is anti-abortion and anti-gun control, but he was also among the Republicans to vote in favor of more federal funds for stem cell research and voted against the re-authorization of the Patriot Act. However, he is best known for his vigorous opposition to federal control of Alaska's land and resources. He is also a strong proponent of opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

On November 4, 1999, Young voted in favor of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which some economists, including Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz, believe helped create the 2007 financial crisis.

In the wake of September 11, 2001, Young sponsored the Airport Security Federalization Act of 2001, which created the Transportation Security Administration.

In July 2007, fellow Republican Congressman Scott Garrett of New Jersey proposed an amendment to strike money in a spending bill for native Alaskan and Hawaiian educational programs. Young defended the funds on the floor of the House, stating that "You want my money, my money." Young also stated that "Those who bite me will be bitten back." Young went on to suggest that conservative Republicans such as Garrett lost the Republicans their majority in the 2006 election by challenging spending earmarks, and made several critical remarks about the state of New Jersey. While Garrett did not ask for an official reprimand, other conservative Republicans took exception to Young's remarks that the funds in question represented his money. Members of the conservative Republican Study Committee gave Garrett a standing ovation later in the day during the group's weekly meeting and Virginia Foxx of North Carolina compared Young's earmarks to "legal theft."

According to ''The New Republic'', Young is "well-known for his sharp elbows and generous appetite for legislative pork." His reputation for steering federal dollars to Alaska is almost as legendary as that of Ted Stevens. For example, in the 2005 Highway Bill, Young helped secure $941 million for 119 "special projects," including a $231 million bridge in Anchorage that a rider in the bill named for Young himself.

He was listed as the third-worst congressman by the popular magazine ''Rolling Stone'', and dubbed "Mr. Pork" due to his involvement in the Gravina Island "Bridge to Nowhere" incident. In the article, Young is quoted as saying that "Environmentalists are a self-centered bunch of waffle-stomping, Harvard-graduating, intellectual idiots" who "are not Americans, never have been Americans, never will be Americans." During a debate on native Alaskans right to sell sex organs of endangered animals for the purpose of aphrodisiacs, he pulled out an eighteen-inch penis bone of a walrus and brandished it like a sword on the House floor.

Congressman Young has been included in the annual listing of the most corrupt members of Congress compiled by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington in 2007, 2008 and 2009 reports on Congressional corruption for abusing his position to benefit family and friends, and for steering millions of dollars in earmarks to corporations in exchange for contributions to his campaign committee and political action committee.

When John McCain asked Young to give up money earmarked for Alaska to help the rebuilding effort from Hurricane Katrina, Young replied that Katrina victims "can kiss my ear!"

Although Congressman Young is considered to be Pro-Life and was quoted saying, "… I have always voted for pro-life legislation as I believe an unborn child is a human being and should be protected through all stages of life," (1997) his official positions on the subject do not make abortion illegal in every scenario. Young believes that abortion should be legal only when the pregnancy is a result of incest or rape, or in the case that a woman’s life is endangered by her pregnancy. He has addressed the issue of the time-period in which abortions should be legal, saying he does not think abortions should be limited to the first trimester of a pregnancy, and also disagrees with the idea of federal subsidies prohibiting abortions.

Young is a signer of Americans for Tax Reform’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge.

"Bridge to Nowhere"

In 2005, Young and Stevens earmarked $223 million for building the enormous Gravina Island Bridge from Ketchikan to Gravina Island, which also contains Ketchikan's airport. The bridge would be used for access by emergency vehicles, as well as passengers. Currently there is a small car and passenger ferry that travels the 1/4 mile (400 m) crossing in 3 to 7 minutes and runs every half hour. Critics assailed this as pork barrel spending at taxpayers' expense and dubbed it the "Bridge to Nowhere." After criticism from citizens and others in Congress, lawmakers defunded the bridge and instead funneled the money to Alaska's Department of Transportation, allowing the Governor of Alaska to start road construction after the Alaska Legislature funded the project with the directed monies.

Another bridge earmarked in the bill connects Anchorage to Pt. Mackenzie, a lightly populated area in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough that is situated less than four miles (6 km) across Cook Inlet from downtown Anchorage. Currently, Anchorage is accessible from Point Mackenzie only by an route around Knik Arm, much of which is an unimproved road. It is currently unlikely that the bridge will be built; if it were, it would enhance the value of property in which Mr. Young's son-in-law owns an interest.

Abramoff scandal

Published reports have linked Young to the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal, although no wrongdoing has been alleged. In September 2002 Young and fellow Republican Steve LaTourette of Ohio wrote to the General Services Administration urging the agency to give preferential treatment to groups such as Indian tribes when evaluating development proposals. In particular, the letter referred to a historic building, the Old Post Office Pavilion in downtown Washington, D.C.

BP Environment Controversy

In late 2010, Obama administration officials stated that the Deepwater Horizon blowout exceeded the Exxon Valdez spill, as they estimated that the gusher had spewed between and of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Around the same time, however, Young declared that the oil pumping into the Gulf was not an "environmental disaster", stating instead that it was a "natural phenomena" as "oil has seeped into this ocean for centuries, will continue to do it. During World War II there was over of oil spilt from ships, and no natural catastrophe. We will lose some birds, we will lose some fixed sealife, but overall it will recover."

Coconut Road

In 2006, Young added a $10 million earmark to a transportation bill for the construction of an interstate interchange for a short stretch of road (known as "Coconut Road") near Fort Myers, Florida. Some puzzled why a congressman from Alaska would earmark for a little road in Florida that the local community opposed. A June 2007 article in the ''New York Times'' reported that a local real estate developer, Daniel J. Aronoff, who owns 4,000 acres (16 km²) along the road helped raise $40,000 for Young shortly before the earmark was inserted. Young's spokeswoman Meredith Kenny initially said that the local Republican congressman, Connie Mack, had requested the funding. In fact, both Mack and local Republican politicians opposed the funding.

In August 2007, the ''Naples Daily News'' reported that the words "Coconut Road interchange" were not in the federal transportation bill as it was approved by Congress. Instead, the words were added ''after'' the votes in the House and Senate, but ''before'' President Bush signed the bill. The original language for the $10 million earmark specified it was for widening of and improvements to Interstate 75. The language within the earmark was changed during a process called "bill enrollment", when technical corrections such as changes in punctuation are made to legislation before it is sent to the President.

In April 2008, top Senate Democrats and Republicans supported asking the Justice Department for a criminal investigation of the $10 million earmark. Young's staff acknowledged that aides "corrected" the earmark just before it went to the White House for President Bush's signature, specifying that the money would go to the proposed highway interchange project. Young said that the project was entirely worthy of an earmark and that he welcomed any inquiry, a spokeswoman said. Young's office said that presentations made by Florida Gulf Coast University officials and the developers proved the case for the project.

Federal investigation

On July 24, 2007, the ''Wall Street Journal'' reported that Young was under federal investigation for possibly taking bribes, illegal gratuities or unreported gifts from VECO Corporation, an Anchorage-based company. The top two executives of that company had already pleaded guilty to bribing members of the Alaska legislature. The Journal said a VECO executive held fundraisers called "the Pig Roast" for Young every August for ten years. Between 1996 and 2006, Young received $157,000 from VECO employees and its political action committee. In the first half of 2007, Young spent more than $250,000 of his campaign contributions for legal fees.

A confession signed by Bill Allen, the former chief of VECO, was released in October 2009. Allen agreed that from 1993 to August 2006, both he and his deputy at VECO, Rick Smith, "provided things of value to United States Representative A," a reference to Young. For example, in June 2006, Smith obtained a set of golf clubs, costing approximately $1,000, that Smith gave to Young. Although Young was obligated in 2006 to report gifts with a value of more than $335, he didn't report receiving any gifts on the personal financial disclosure form he filed with the House of Representatives for that year.

Congressional Hearing Argument

On November 18, 2011, Young got into an argument during a Congressional hearing with Douglas Brinkley, a historian who teaches at Rice University in Texas, over the idea of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Reports say that during Brinkley’s testimony Young was not present in the room, yet still continued to respond to the speech Brinkley had made. Young himself commented that his absence during Brinkley's testimony was attributable to a pre-scheduled vote on the House floor. Young not only referred to Brinkley’s argument as “garbage”, but also mistakenly addressed Brinkley as “Dr. Rice.” In return, Brinkley made disparaging remarks about Young's education, stating, "I know you went to Yuba College and couldn't graduate." For continually interrupting Young and the committee chairman, Brinkley was threatened with removal from the hearing. Young responded to the Rice University history professor to demand “I’ll say anything I want to say! You just be quiet!”.

Interest Group Ratings

Interest Group !! Score
! Highest !!
National Right to Life Committee	100%
Sportsmen and Animal Owner’s Voting Alliance	100%
The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association	100%
United States Chamber of Commerce	100%
Campaign for Working Families	100%
Christian Coalition of America	100%
American Security Council Foundation	100%
Federation for American Immigration Reform	100%
Disabled American Veterans	100%
Lowest !!
NARAL Pro-Choice America	0%
National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association	0%
Human Rights Campaign	0%
National Association of Social Workers	0%
Women Employed	0%
League of Conservation Voters	0%
Peace Action	0%
National Breast Cancer Association	0%
Latin America Working Group	0%
NewPolicy.org	0%
Big Cat Rescue	0%

(As of 2009 to 2010 data, based on Young's positions and House of Representative Scores)

Committee assignments

Committee on Natural Resources

*Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources

*Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife

*Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

*Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation

*Subcommittee on Highways and Transit

*Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

Caucus memberships

Arthritis Caucus

Congressional Caucus on Unmanned Systems

House Biomedical Research Caucus

House Diabetes Caucus

International Conservation Caucus

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus

Sportsmen's Caucus

Electoral history

+ Alaska's At-large congressional district: Results 1972–2010

Year

!

Republican

Votes

Pct

!

Democratic

Votes

Pct

!

Third Party

Votes

Pct

!

Third Party

Votes

Pct

!

Third Party

Votes

Pct

!

Write-in votes

Write-in %

!

1973

0.16%

0.39%

0.44%

0.14%

0.14%

0.25%

0.51%

0.13%

0.12%

0.10%

0.21%

0.30%

0.00%

0.24%

0.38%

0.49%

Personal life

Young was married to the former Lula Fredson, an indigenous Gwich'in. She volunteered her time serving as the manager of her husband's Washington, D.C. Congressional office. They had two daughters and were members of the Episcopal Church. Lula died on August 1, 2009 at the age of 67.

References

Further reading

Don Young caught lying about debate over emissions bill ''Alaska Report'', May 20, 2006

Don Young Gives Self Fictitious "Hero of the Taxpayer" Award from Watchdog Group July 25, 2008

External links

U.S. Congressman Don Young ''official U.S. House site''

Profile at SourceWatch

Quotations at BrainyQuote

Nov 18, 2011, House Natural Resources Committee, Rep. Don Young's response to testimony from Dr. Douglas Brinkley regarding the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Category:1933 births Category:Living people Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Alaska Category:Alaska State Senators Category:Members of the Alaska House of Representatives Category:Mayors of places in Alaska Category:Alaska city council members Category:United States Army soldiers Category:American sailors Category:American Episcopalians Category:People from Chico, California Category:California State University, Chico alumni Category:People from Sutter County, California Category:Alaska Republicans

de:Don Young la:Donaldus Young pl:Don Young pt:Don Young sv:Don Young