Energy & Environment: Markey Wants Answers on Rare Earths
• Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., "is pressing the Obama administration for information about alleged Chinese restrictions on the export of rare earth minerals used in defense and energy technologies, warning of threats to U.S. interests," The Hill reports.
• "Three months after BP capped its runaway well in the Gulf of Mexico, the state of Louisiana is still building a chain of sand berms off its coast to block and capture oil even as federal officials and many scientists argue that the effort will prove pointless," the New York Times reports.
• An Idaho couple has "sued the state to stop the shipments by Imperial Oil and ConocoPhillips" to an oil sands site in Canada, "arguing that the" truck loads delivered there "would threaten the integrity of Idaho's historic portion of U.S. 12, as well as the safety of communities that depend on it as the main road in and out of the area," the Times also reports. "National environmental groups and climate change activists are supporting their efforts, seeing a broader opportunity to stall development of Canada's oil sands, which they denounce as a dirty source of energy. "
• "Combating climate change has long taken a back seat to coal production in West Virginia, but in the hard-fought House race in this state's 1st district, global warming hasn't even made it onto the bus," The Hill reports. "In interviews on Thursday, both the Democratic and Republican nominees for Congress voiced skepticism of the science behind global warming, and the Republican, David McKinley, flatly called concerns about climate change 'an attack on coal.'"
Contributor
Kristen M. Nicole
Biography provided by participant
Ms. Kristen M. Nicole is a senior project engineer in the power delivery and utilization research sector at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). Based in Washington DC, she conducts research and provides strategic analysis to address power systems integration and variability challenges associated with solar energy, with a focus on improved solar forecasting.
Prior to joining EPRI, Ms. Nicole was a solar energy analyst researching grid integration for the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Program (DOE). She managed the solar resource assessment and characterization research portfolio, worked on solutions to high penetration solar grid integration in the distribution system and solar variability mitigation in transmission system operations. Prior to this post she was with the global training division of the Institute for Public-Private Partnerships, Inc. (IP3) where she was responsible for international client management, business development and strategic marketing initiatives. Ms. Kristen Nicole was responsible for capacity building in public-private partnerships, industrial regulation and utility management in energy, water, telecommunications and transportation sectors in a host of countries. She also has previous experiences with the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Peace Corps in Bangladesh.
Ms. Kristen Nicole holds an MBA in Accounting and Strategic Management from George Washington University and a BA in International Relations, focused in International Economics and Business in East Asia-China from Boston University.
Ms. Kristen Nicole is affiliated with IEEE Power and Energy Society, UVIG, WCEE, ISES and Women in Solar. Ms. Nicole represents alumni and friends of the International School of Beijing, China (ISB) in the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
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