Environmental Studies 539: Air Resources Policy & Science

Syllabus, Fall 2004

University of Wisconsin-Madison, Fall 2004
Tuesday & Thursday 10am-11:15 pm
Instructor: T. Holloway
Room 201 A, Enzyme Institute, 1710 (old) University Ave.
Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday 11:15 – 12:15, or by appointment
taholloway@wisc.edu / (608) 262 5356

http://www.sage.wisc.edu/courses/ES400

PURPOSE

The purpose of the course is to familiarize students with key issues involved in applying scientific approaches to policy questions. The policy issues examined focus on energy, climate and air pollution on various spatial and temporal scales – from global climate change to regulation of smoking in city bars.

Class projects will employ and develop both quantitative and qualitative skills through computer-based assignments, problem-solving, writing, presentations, and in-class discussion. A term paper will allow students to bring their own expertise to class, and relate issues in class to a particular area of interest.

Term Paper

You will be required to develop a paper over the course of the semester discussing the role of science and/or quantitative assessment method in a particular air resource policy or law issue of interest to you. I am happy to discuss term paper topic ideas on an individual basis. There are 4 due-dates you should keep in mind relating to the paper:

1) 10/7/04: 5-page prospectus. This is an early opportunity for you to get ideas down about your term paper topic. Please provide an overview of the issue and the major players involved in the decision-making. I will provide feedback on your writing and ideas. The paper will be graded based only on your completion of minimum standards, e.g. length of paper, number of references, etc. (These objective standards will be outlined in a class handout.) Grades will thus reflect completion of standards, while the ideas of the paper receive non-graded feedback.

2) 10/28/04: Rough draft of paper. These papers will be exchanged for in-class peer review, and submitted to me for additional comments. Again, grades will only be given for “effort,” as measured by completion of specified minimum standards.

3) 12/7/04: Final paper due (max. 20 pages, double-spaced).

4) 12/9/04: 10 minute presentation on paper topic (please use MS Power Point)

EVALUATION

Students will be graded on homework problem sets, paper prospectus, paper rough draft, in-class presentation (45%), final paper (35%), class participation including attendance (20%).

Nothing will be accepted past noon on the day due.

All requests for grade re-evaluation must be submitted in written form within 2 days of receiving original grade.

TEXTS

• A course reader will be made available at a university-area copy shop (and through Learn@UW)

• Godish, T., “Air Quality, 4th Edition,” Lewis Publishers, 2003.
  
  
  

UNIT 1: FRAMEWORKS FOR UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF SCIENCE IN POLICY

Thursday 9/2/04: Class Overview and Introductions

Week of 9/6/04: Special Workshop, Excel tutorial

Reading due Tuesday 9/7/04

• R1 --Wildavsky, A. (1995) “Conclusion: Rejecting the Precautionary Principle” in But Is It True? (Harvard University Press) p. 425-447.

• R2 -- Moore, C. (2003) “The Best Science, Values, and the Precautionary Principle to Protect Children,” Ch. 7 in Silent Scourge (Oxford University Press) p. 246-261.
  
  
  

Tuesday 9/7/04: The Precuationary Principle

Reading due Thursday 9/9/04

• R3 -- Pielke, Jr., R. A. 2003 (in press). “Abortion, Tornadoes and Forests: Thinking about Science, Politics and Policy,” chapter in J. Bowersox and K. Arabas (eds.) Forest Futures: Science, Policy and Politics for the Next Century (Rowman and Littlefield) p. 143-152.

• R4 -- Jasanoff, S. (1990) “Rationalizing Politics.” in The Fifth Branch: Science as Advisers as Policymakers. (Harvard University Press) Cambridge, MA., p. 1-19.
  
  
  

Thursday 9/9/04: Values and Science

Reading due Tuesday 9/14/04

• R5 -- Stokes, D. E. 1997. “Pasteur’s Quadrant, Basic Science and Technological Innovation” Chapter 1 (p. 1-25); Chapter 3 (p. 58-89)

• R6 -- Powell, M. R. Science at EPA, Information in the Regulatory Process. RFF, Washington, D.C. 1999. Ch. 1, p.1-20.
  
  

Tuesday 9/14/04: What Makes Good Science?

UNIT 2: ENERGY AND EMISSIONS OVERVIEW

Reading due Thursday 9/16/04

• R7 – Goodell, J. Blasts from the Past. New York Times Magazine. New York: Jul 22, 2001. p. 30

• R8 -- James A Lake, Ralph G Bennett, John F Kotek. Next Generation Nuclear Power. Scientific American. New York: Jan 2002. Vol. 286, Iss. 1; p. 73
  

Thursday 9/16/04: Resources and Limitations of Electricity System Technologies,
(Rosh Hashanah)
Guest Lecture: Dr. Paul Meier, Meier Engineering Research, LLC

Reading due Tuesday 9/21/04

• R9 – Appenzeller, T. The End of Cheap Oil. National Geographic. Washington: Jun 2004. Vol. 205, Iss. 6; p. 80-109.
• R10 – Frey, D. How Green Is BP? New York Times Magazine. New York: Dec 8, 2002. p. 98
  
  

Tuesday 9/21/04 Coal, Nuclear, Oil and Natural Gas

Due Thursday 9/23/04

• Problem Set #1, Analyzing energy trends and compounded growth
  

• R11 -- Fleming, N., Crunch time looms for offshore wind power. New Scientist. London: Dec 6-Dec 12, 2003. Vol. 180, Iss. 2424, p. 30.
  

Thursday 9/23/04 Alternative energy sources
Guest Lecture: Dr. Paul Denholm, UW-Madison/NREL

Due Tuesday 9/28/04

• R12 -- Bruce Barcott. Changing All the Rules. New York Times Magazine. New York: Apr 4, 2004. p. 38
  

Tuesday 9/28/04 Regulating emissions at DNR
Guest lecture: Bart Sponseller, LADCO

Due Thursday 9/30/04

• R13 -- Forward, Overview, and Summaries from National Energy Policy

• Further reading on details of policy at http://www.whitehouse.gov/energy/)
  

• Problem Set #2, Calculating emissions
  

Thursday 9/30/04 Developing a national energy policy

UNIT 3: RESPONDING TO WEATHER AND CLIMATE VARIABILITY

Due Tuesday 10/5/04

• Book 1 -- Godish, Ch. 1 The Atmosphere
  

Tuesday 10/5/04 Introduction to Climate Variability and El Nino

Due Thursday 10/7/04:

• 5-page paper prospectus
  

• R15 -- Stewart, T. R. “Uncertainty, Judgment, and Error in Prediction,” p. 41-56 in Prediction: Science, Decision-Making, and the Future of Nature. Edited by Sarewitz, Pielke, and Byerly. Island Press, Washington DC, 2000.
  

• R16 -- National Research Council, 2003. Communicating Uncertainties in Weather and Climate Information. Ch. 2, Case Studies & Ch. 3, Lessons Learned. p 5-42.
  

Thursday 10/7/04 Policy issues in Weather and Climate

Reading Due Tuesday 10/12/04

• R17 -- Lemos, M. C, 2003: A tale of two policies: The politics of climate forecasting and drought relief in Ceara, Brazil. Policy Sciences 36, 101-123.
  

• R18 – Lee, D.H., Clites, A.H., Keillor, J.P. Assessing Risk in Operational Decisions Using Great Lakes Probabilistic Water Level Forecasts. Environmental Management Vol. 21, No. 1, p. 43–58
  

Tuesday 10/12/04 Vulnerability to Natural Disasters

UNIT 4: GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENCE AND POLICY

Reading Due Thursday 10/14/04:

• R18 -- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 1: The Scientific Basis, Summary for Policy Makers. http://www.ipcc.ch/pub/spm22-01.pdf

• R19 – UNFCC. Caring for Climate, A guide to the Climate Change Convention and Its Kyoto Protocol, 2002. http://unfccc.int/resource/cfc_guide.pdf

Thursday 10/14/04 Current Understanding and Policy on Climate Change


Due Tuesday 10/19/04:

• R20 – Sarewitz, D. and Pielke, R. Jr. Breaking the Global-Warming Gridlock. The Atlantic Monthly. Boston: Jul 2000. Vol. 286, Iss. 1; p. 54
  

Tuesday 10/19/04 In class project

Due Thursday 10/21/04:

• Problem set #4, Long term climate change

Thursday 10/21/04: Assessment and Impacts

Reading due Tuesday 10/26/04

• R21 -- Nordhaus, W. D. Reflections on the Economics of Climate Change. The Journal of Economic Perspectives. Nashville: Fall 1993. Vol. 7, Iss. 4; p. 11-25.

• R22 -- Schelling, T. C. Intergenerational Discounting. Energy Policy. Kidlington: Apr/May 1995. Vol. 23, Iss. 4,5; p. 395-401.
  

Tuesday 10/26/04: Economics of Global Warming

Due Thursday 10/28/04:

• Rough Draft of Paper

Thursday 10/28/04: Climate Policy

UNIT 5: MANAGING AIR QUALITY

Due Tuesday 11/2/04

• R23 – EPA. Chapter 1 Outdoor Air Quality. EPA’s Draft on the Environment. 2003. p. 1-24.

• Book 2 -- Godish, Ch. 2, Atmospheric Pollution and Pollutants (read p. 23-33; skim remainder)
  

Tuesday 11/2/04: Air Pollution Overview
Guest lecturer: Bart Sponseller, LADCO

Due Thursday 11/4/04:

• Editorial review letters (bring 2 copies) (“problem set #5”)

• R24 -- EPA, "Benefits and Costs of the Clean Air Act," Report to Congress, 1997. Available online at http://www.epa.gov/air/sect812/copy.html. Please read Executive Summary. Full text is optional, but may be useful to clarify methods.

• Book 3 -- Godish, Ch 4, 5, 6 “Atmospheric Effects, Health effects, etc.” (p. 93-113, p. 141-181, 183-215)
  

Thursday 11/4/04: Air Pollution Impacts and Assessment

Due Tuesday 11/9/04:

• Problem set #6 Air Pollution Modeling

Tuesday 11/9/04: Introduction to Modeling

Due Thursday 11/11/04

• R25 -- Powell, M.R. Acquisition and Use of Science at EPA. Science at EPA, Information in the Regulatory Process. RFF, Washington, D.C. 1999. p. 19-56

• Book 4 -- Godish, Ch. 8 “Regulation and Public Policy” (p. 257-295)
  

Thursday 11/11/04: Introduction to Air Quality Management
Guest lecturer: Bart Sponseller, LADCO

Due Tuesday 11/16/04

• R26 -- To be announced

Tuesday 11/16/04: Industry Perspectives on Air Quality Regulation
Possible guest lecturer

Due Thursday 11/18/04:

• R27 -- Levy, M. A. European Acid Rain: The Power of Tote-Board Diplomacy. In Institutions for the Earth, ed. P. M. Haas, R. O. Keohane, M. A. Levy. MIT Press, 1993.p.75-132.

• R28 -- Hansen, J., M. Sato, R. Ruedy, A. Lacis, and V. Oinas. “Global warming in the twenty-first century: An alternative scenario” PNAS Early Edition 2000 p. 1-6.

Thursday 11/18/04: International Air Pollution Management

Due Tuesday 11/ 23/04

• Problem Set #7, Source-Receptor Relationships

Tuesday 11/23/04: Public Awareness of Air Quality Policy and Science

Thursday 11/25/04: Thanksgiving

Tuesday 11/30/04: Air Pollution in Developing Countries

UNIT 6: ADDITIONAL TOPICS

Reading Due Thursday 12/2/04:

• Book 5 -- Godish, Ch. 4, Section 6, “Stratospheric Ozone Depletion” (p. 113-124)

Thursday 12/2/04: History, Policy, and Science of the Ozone Hole

Due Tuesday 12/7/04:

• Final Papers

• Book 6 -- Godish, Ch. 11 “Indoor Air Quality” p. 352-392)

Tuesday 12/7/04: Regulation of Indoor Air Pollution

Due Thursday 12/9/04:

• 10-minute in-class presentation on term paper topic

Thursday 12/9/04: In class presentations

Tuesday 12/14/04 Last Day of Class

Biographies

Tracey Holloway is an assistant professor of Environmental Studies, working with the Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment (SAGE) and the Energy Sources, Systems and Policy Cluster at the University of Wisconsin. Her research focuses on the role of computer models in the policy process, particularly atmospheric chemistry models and their application to energy use strategies, public health assessments, and international environmental treaties. Prof. Holloway arrived in Madison in August, 2003, following a two-year post-doc at Columbia University's Earth Institute. She earned her Ph.D. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences from Princeton University, a Graduate Certificate in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and a Sc.B. in Applied Mathematics from Brown University. Her work has been supported by grants from the Department of Defense, NASA, and the Princeton Environmental Institute.

Paul Meier provides energy systems research, modeling, and public outreach through his consulting company, Meier Engineering Research LLC. He developed the Energy ED Simulator to facilitate discussions about challenges and opportunities for providing clean, reliable, and affordable electricity. Paul received his Ph.D. through the Institute of Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, where his research efforts on greenhouse gas reduction strategies twice received the General Motors Environmental Excellence Award. Paul is a professional engineer with a decade of experience providing environmental and energy expertise to diverse industry and public interest groups. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in environmental engineering from Purdue University and Clemson University.

Paul Denholm will join the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (Golden, CO) this fall as an Energy Analyst. He completed his Ph.D. in the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies in 2004 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A primary focus of his work is developing models of sustainable energy systems for the Midwestern U.S. Prior to his work on renewable energy systems, he received a Masters degree in physics and worked as an electrical engineer designing electric power control systems.

Bart Sponseller is an Air Pollution Control Specialist, employed by the Lake Michigan Air Directors Consortium (LADCO) for Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Air Management. Bart graduated from the University of Delaware in 1996 with degrees in Environmental Sciences and German. He attended the University of Wisconsin – Madison where he earned a masters degree in Air Resources Management. Bart’s thesis topic was the study of mercury accumulation in trembling aspen across a known, ground level ozone gradient in Wisconsin. Following graduate school, he worked for the Vermont Air Pollution Control Division as the Air Toxics Program Coordinator, where he coordinated the implementation of Vermont’s air toxics rule. This included analyzing air toxics monitoring data, coordinating air toxics modeling efforts, developing air toxics emissions inventories, providing assistance in the permitting process, assisting in compliance related issues, revising the air toxics rule, etc. Bart also chaired the NESCAUM Air Quality and Public Health committee for a couple of years. Currently, his primary duties are to assist in criteria pollutant emission inventory development, ozone forecasting, and the development of a fine particulate forecasting method for Wisconsin.

Jon Heinrich is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Bureau of Air Management. He currently coordinates development of a state regulation that would limit mercury air emissions from electric utilities in Wisconsin, and leads the agency’s mercury team that is responsible for coordinating mercury related activities including mercury research, product legislation development, and establishment of a state mercury reduction goal. Mr. Heinrich has thirty years of experience with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Air Management Program. This experience includes air management policy development at a regional and national level relating to regulation of hazardous air pollutants and addressing acid deposition. He has also directed the preparation of plans to meet national air quality standards and guided studies of emerging air quality issues such as ecological risk assessment and climate change. Internationally he has participated in air management policy related projects in partnership with national and local environmental agencies in the Czech Republic, Romania and Ukraine.

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Last Updated: Sept. 1, 2004