The Nelson Institute Issue Brief summarizes the latest scholarship from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, highlighting faculty and graduate student work on key environmental issues. The Issue Brief is not a peer-reviewed publication. Contact the article authors or the editor, Morgan Robertson, at mmrobertson@wisc.edu with questions.
Read the Latest Edition: Renewable and Alternative Energy
Introduction
There is growing interest in shifting our energy systems from fossil fuels to renewable and alternative energy sources like solar, wind, hydropower, nuclear, and biofuels. Beyond climate benefits, these forms of alternative energy can create benefits for local energy costs, environmental quality, public health, and employment.
However, some significant barriers remain toward widespread alternative energy expansion. These can include: the quantity of mineral resources needed for energy infrastructure, land use requirements, concerns related to property value, health, and aesthetic impacts, and the need for greater energy storage infrastructure in addition to generating facilities.
As of June 2023, Wisconsin received 15.2 percent of its utility-scale electricity from nuclear power, and 9.1 percent from other renewables (hydropower, biofuels, wind, and solar), with the remaining electricity generated from methane gas and coal.
In 2019, Governor Tony Evers’ Executive Order #38 set a goal for all electricity consumed in Wisconsin to come from carbon-free sources by 2050. Recent proposals for solar and wind devel-opment across the Midwest have received both support and criticism from the public, sparking significant debate around the topic of alternative energy.
In this Nelson Issue Brief — the first of a two-part edition on the topic of renewable and alternative energy — we aim to contribute to these critical conversations by highlighting recent research from UW–Madison scholars that addresses alternative energy issues in Wisconsin and beyond.
The research presented here covers capacity building to support energy applications of satellite data, community engagement to identify and address local energy needs, estimating the economic and health benefits of grid decarbonization in Wisconsin, and a holistic framework for understanding the societal benefits of utility-scale solar expansion.
Key Points
The energy analysis and policy (EAP) program at UW–Madison facilitates the integration of satellite data into energy applications through collaborative workshops that connect a range of stakeholders to identify opportunities and overcome challenges.
Community engagement and collaboration are crucial for facilitating the transition to clean energy technologies in Wisconsin, despite challenges related to feasibility and political barriers.
Decarbonizing Wisconsin’s electricity grid is technically feasible and cost-effective, offering significant health benefits through the reduction of air pollutant emissions.
The impacts of utility-scale solar energy could encompass a range of economic, social, environmental, and technical benefits, and a more holistic framework for measuring and distributing these benefits can facilitate a more just energy transition.
Stories
A Holistic Framework of the Benefits of Utility-Scale Solar
Researchers studying “energy justice” have begun to explore how clean energy benefits and costs will be distributed with respect to demographic factors such as income and race.
What are Wisconsinites’ Perspectives on Community Energy Management and the Clean Energy Transition?
To address challenges posed by climate change and the energy transition, community needs may vary based on their unique social, political and cultural contexts, and not all communities are equipped to navigate the ever-changing landscape of emerging science and technology related to the energy transition.
Health Benefits for Electricity Decarbonization Pathways in Wisconsin
The largest health benefits are the reduction of nonfatal heart attacks and the reduction of days where restricted activity would be necessary for vulnerable people.
Satellite Data for Renewable Energy
Satellite observations with global or near-global coverage of the earth can support planning, siting, and operation of renewable energy systems.
Previous Nelson Issue Briefs
PFAS in Surface and Drinking Water
This edition presents research from UW–Madison scholars on PFAS as an emerging contaminant of concern in Wisconsin’s drinking water, lakes, and rivers. The contributions highlight new methods for identifying PFAS sources and monitoring the extent of contamination in surface and groundwater to help resource managers protect the state’s valuable freshwater resources.
Public Lands Managed for Conservation
Contributions include research on the importance of local leadership and participation in conservation, navigating the transfer of conservation easements between landowners, economic benefits of recreation on public lands, and the benefits of managed grazing.
Extreme Heat and Drought
This edition includes research into the impact of urban heat islands, how to better address extreme heat events to avoid preventable death, and how drought impacts Wisconsin agriculture.
Nutrient Pollution in Surface Waters
This issue features research that addresses excess nutrient concentrations, mostly nitrogen and phosphorus, in surface water. Nutrient pollution degrades recreational and commercial use of surface waters from Wisconsin to the Gulf of Mexico, largely through blue-green algae blooms. In Wisconsin, phosphorus is the most-regulated nutrient, as nitrogen is often considered more of a threat to human health through polluted drinking water, though it also impacts surface waters.
Global Pandemics and the Environment
This edition includes articles detailing the impact that reduced human activity during periods of quarantine had on wildlife and air pollution. The final entry details how diseases like COVID-19 have been transmitted from wildlife to humans, and how increased human activity amplifies the chances of transmission in the future.
Environmental Justice and Environmental Racism
This issue features research on the differential impacts of air pollution, the justice impacts that stem from addressing climate change, and the impacts of mercury across the landscape. We also highlight attempts to center environmental justice within environmental education. We close with a story from a manoomin (wild rice) researcher who shares her connection with an indigenous community and how that connection shaped her research.
What are the Impacts of Extreme Precipitation Events?
As the people of Wisconsin adapt to more frequent, heavier precipitation events, we present research detailing likely future precipitation changes, adaptation efforts, and ecological, social and economic consequences of the increasing frequency, and intensity of these events.
Deer: Hunting, Ecology, and Chronic Wasting Disease
As the Evers administration attempts to balance the ecological impact of deer, the social and economic impact of deer hunting, and the potential dangers of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), the second edition of the Nelson Issue Brief provides summaries of important deer-related research taking place at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Nitrate Contamination in Drinking Water and Groundwater
Safe drinking water has become a major bipartisan priority in Wisconsin. Governor Tony Evers has declared 2019 the year of Safe Drinking Water and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos has commissioned a taskforce on water quality. This inaugural edition of the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies Issue Brief focuses on the most widespread groundwater contaminant: Nitrates. This is an environmental and public health hazard faced by Wisconsinites statewide.