Renewable energy from wastewater: a synthesis of the agricultural, energy, and transportation sectors and environmental tradeoffs
Energy sustainability is a goal of many cities, states, and countries. Thirty-seven U.S. states plus the District of Columbia have implemented renewable portfolio standards to promote the use of renewable energy (Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency, 2013). Renewable energy sources include: wind, solar, biomass, hydroelectric, geothermal, landfill gas, and ocean. Each source has its own environmental and socio-economic advantages and disadvantages. Understanding the environmental and economic implications of greater reliance on renewable energy requires a synthesis of the energy system, its inputs, outputs, and the environmental consequences.
The goal of the proposed research is to analyze the interconnected wastewater, energy, transportation, retail fertilizer, and agricultural markets to improve our understanding of the socio-economic and environmental consequences of waste-to-energy systems and to help provide actionable insights into how firms and public agencies in this sector can improve decision-making.