Energy for Sustainability: Technology, Planning, Policy - Hardcover

Randolph PhD, John; Masters, Gilbert M.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1597261033 ISBN 13: 9781597261036

Publisher: Island Press, 2008

Synopsis

Energy for Sustainability is the first undergraduate textbook on renewable energy and energy efficiency with a unique focus on the community scale. Written by two of the foremost experts in the field, it is a pedagogically complete treatment of energy sources and uses. It examines the full range of issues—from generating technologies to land use planning—in making the transition to sustainable energy.

The book begins by providing a historical perspective on energy use by human civilizations and then covers energy fundamentals and trends; buildings and energy; sustainable electricity; sustainable transportation and land use; and energy policy and planning. Included in these topical areas are in-depth discussions of all of the most promising sources of renewable energy, including solar photovoltaic systems, wind turbines, and biofuels. In addition, the authors offer a thorough presentation of “green” building design, the impact of land use and transportation patterns on energy use, and the policies needed to transform energy markets at the local, state, and national levels. Throughout, the authors first provide the necessary theory and then demonstrate how it can be applied, utilizing cutting-edge practices and technologies, and the most current available data.

Since the dawn of the industrial age, the explosive growth in economic productivity has been fueled by oil, coal, and natural gas. World energy use nearly doubled between 1975 and 2005. China’s energy use has been doubling every decade. The implications for the environment are staggering. One way or another, our reliance on fossil fuels will have to end. Energy for Sustainability evaluates the alternatives and helps students understand how, with good planning and policy decisions, renewable energy and efficiency can support world demands at costs we can afford—economically, environmentally, and socially.

About this title

About the Author:

John Randolph is director of the School of Public & International Affairs and professor of environmental planning at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He is the author of Environmental Land Use Planning and Management (Island Press, 2003). In 2006, he was awarded the William R. and June Dale Prize for Excellence in Urban and Regional Planning.
 
Gilbert M. Masters is professor of civil and environmental engineering (emeritus) at Stanford University. He is the author of six books, including the widely used textbook Introduction to Environmental Engineering and Science.

Review:

"Energy for Sustainability provides two vital services to the rapidly expanding clean energy field: first, it presents the methods and analytic tools needed to evaluate energy choices in their full and modern technical, economic, and environmental context; and second, it offers the latest information on the wide range of innovations that make this field so exciting and dynamic. This book will no doubt fast become the standard for teaching and instruction as clean and efficient energy goes mainstream." (Dan Kammen, University of California, Berkeley)

"I've been teaching energy policy in the U.S. and in Sweden for more than thirty years—and have always been looking for suitable text books. The Randolph and Masters book is one of the best that I've seen. I wish that it had been available years ago." (Dean Abrahamson, Professor Emeritus, Energy and Environmental Policy, University of Minnesota)

"The right book at the right time! Energy for Sustainability is aimed at technologists and policy-makers, but it ought to be the primary text for a national conversation about the most important issues before the nation. It is the best and most inclusive discussion of the critical choices about energy issues that I know . . . will be the standard for years to come." (David W. Orr, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor, Oberlin College)

"[A]n interdisciplinary and encyclopedic approach seeking to inform policy makers and technologists in equal shares." (Reference & Research Book News)

About this edition

• Publisher: Island Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1597261033
• ISBN 13: 9781597261036
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 816