Research
Maddie Edminister
carbon intensive your lifestyle is, are you willing to commit to reducing that?” While compressing an extensive report like this can be Ohio is currently ranked as the seventh highest energy a very difficult thing to do, Dr. Miller insists that there are consuming state in the country1, and therefore will be three key points to take away from the project. heavily impacted by Federal climate change or carbon 1. This is “the most comprehensive assessment emissions policies. Recently a groundbreaking new report of Ohio’s carbon profile, potential policy examining the effects of climate change and carbon recommendations and the economic emissions on Ohio’s environment and economy was assessment of those potential policy published by experts from both Ohio University and The recommendations that has ever been Ohio State University. done.” Most previous assessments of the climate Dr. Scott Miller, the Director of Energy and have been done on the national level, which fails to Environmental Programs at OU’s Voinovich School of analyze specifically what needs to be done in Ohio Leadership and Public Affairs, recently collaborated with to best suit our environment and economy. representatives from The Ohio State University to produce this comprehensive report, Assuring Competitiveness in a Carbon-Constrained World. 2. We must be realistic about taking on new legislation and the potential impacts of that Ohio is heavily reliant on coal, which is a large legislation, both positive and negative. Dr. Miller contributing factor to our placement as third highest says, “Those tradeoffs that are going to come as a polluter of carbon dioxide (CO2) due to electricity 2 result of that climate change legislation are generation in the nation. This report takes an in-depth important to note, they will be costly, but that’s look at the effects greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) have not necessarily bad.” on our environment and economy, and works towards realistic, policy-oriented solutions for these issues. While the actual work is over seven hundred pages long, the 3. We must be committed to preserving our interactive website and executive summary make it easy to quality of life and therefore, aware of the navigate key areas and take away components. The entire harmful pollutants that come with burning fossil study can be broken down into four major areas of focus fuels such as coal. “There are social, health and which are summarized on the following page. quality of life impacts that come from a more After reading through these broken down segments of sustainable, lower carbon lifestyle.” the report, we college students might still find ourselves In summary, Assuring Competitiveness in a Carbonasking, “How can I make a difference?” It turns out, you do Constrained World is the most comprehensive report to be not have to be an engineer nor a political lobbyist to start published yet on climate change and potential policy reducing your carbon footprint. Dr. Miller understands making in the state of Ohio. It has set forth goals and that completely eliminating your carbon footprint is objectives to aide in actualizing a more sustainable, clean unrealistic, yet he makes active choices to limit his and efficient environment, economy and society. While pollution, such as driving a Prius and supporting local there are many higher, governmental forces at work with farmer’s markets. this plan, we must not fail to apply its core concepts to “You have to look at your personal behavior patterns, really seriously take a step back and look at our own lives. As Dr. Miller says, “Even though this is a very large and overarching, complex report – at the end of the amount of electricity you use, the amount of vehicle miles you travel, the amount of hot water that the day it all comes down to personal behaviors.” you use – there’s a carbon cost to things that we don’t even think about. Then, once you understand how
Ohio, Carbon Emissions and Implications
Sources from Assuring Ohio’s Competitiveness: Executive Summary 1 U.S. Energy Information Administration. State Energy Data System (SEDS). (2011, June 30). Table C10. Energy Consumption by End-Use Sector, Ranked by State, 2009. Retrieved from http://www.eia.gov/state/seds/hf.jsp?incfile=sep_sum/html/rank_use.html 2 U.S. Energy Information Administration. State Electricity Profiles: Ohio. (2011, April). Table 1. 2009 Summary Statistics (Ohio). Retrieved from http://www.eia.gov/cneaf/electricity/st_profiles/ohio.html
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