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Northeast Asia is one of the most dynamic and diverse regions of the world. Fueled by high population growth and vibrant economies, energy consumption is currently 12% of the world's total and projected to increase by a factor of 2 to 3 by 2030. Because fossil fuels will provide much of this energy, emissions of sulfur dioxide are projected to increase by about the same amount. Northeast China is the main emitting region, and sulfur is transported across the Korean peninsula to Japan and beyond. Acid deposition is evident today and will increase dramatically in the future. It is projected that severe damage to ecosystems will occur throughout the region without the introduction of emission controls. Abatement technology could cost USD 10-30 billion annually by 2030 and still provide only partial protection. There is an urgent need for regional cooperation to improve the level of scientific understanding and develop a basis for regionwide control strategies.

Energy system in Serbia, from exploitation of primary energy sources transformations in electric power plants and district heating plants, energy (electric and heat) transmission and distribution to final users, is faced with a number of irrational and in efficient behaviors and processes. Those are consequences of the old technologies in use, old equipment at the end of their life time, bad exploitation of the equipment in use, wrong energy strategy in the past, un suitable energy price policy, as well as delayed refurbishment of the equipment and delayed implementation of the modern technologies. Structure of the industry, developed after the World War II also contributed to a high specific use of energy per unit of production. Paper gives a short review of the present status of energy system in Serbia with special emphasis on the energy efficiency, renewable energy sources use and import energy dependence. Main part of the paper is devoted to the activity of the National Energy Efficiency Program (NEEP), founded by Ministry of Science and Environmental Protection. A program started in 2002 and in the period up to 2005, 140 R&D&D projects and 25 feasibility studies have been financed. The main aim of the NEEP is to combine research and engineering activities in order to research, demonstrate, and implement modern efficient technologies and equipment, engineering and management methods, as a tool for increasing energy efficiency and promotion of renewable energy sources. The intention was also to coordinate all activities, from the choice of the priorities, selection of the best projects proposed, up to the control of the realization of the projects financed. Review of the priorities chosen in the period 2002-2005 is also presented. NEEP engaged the most experienced researchers from scientific institutes and faculties, and engineers from industry, but implementation of the results was not successful. Main reasons can be identified as: industry and agriculture municipal and local authorities presently are not in an economic situation to in vest money in new equipment and modern technologies in order to increase energy efficiency; energy and fuel prices do not stimulate rational and efficient use of energy; favor able environment for rational and efficient behavior of the people and companies was not created by governmental policy.

Extensive green roofs are established with thin layers of substrate exerting only small load to the roof. The construction of such a roof is relatively simple, low cost demanding, and, on the other hand, it is able to improve not only the ecological value of the concerned building but also the overall value of its surroundings. One of the requirements an extensive green roof is able to comply with is thermal insulation of the roof. The aim of our research was to find the extent of energy savings in case of a model green roof in climatic conditions of the Nitra town. The roof was built with standard materials with heat transmission coefficients refereed by the manufacturer. At the same time we evaluated, using the TEVLAKO software (software for heating systems and thermal protection of buildings), energy savings and losses corresponding to reduced thickness of thermo-insulating materials used for construction of the studied model extensive green roof. We obtained the following results: 1. An extensive green roof can represent lower costs thanks to reduction of the necessary thermo-insulation layer. 2. In summer, an extensive green roof can represent savings in energy necessary for cooling air in rooms situated immediately under the roof, because green roofs reduce the penetration of heat from solar radiation and can lower the inside temperature under the roof by 5–6 deg C.

The debate over the current biofuels policy has two positions: first, those considering it as an alternative aimed at reducing dependence on fossil fuels and contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming; secondly, those who argue about the distributional conflicts that can bring socio-environmental adoption of these policies at local level. This article presents the national policy settings and scenarios of biofuel production based on agro-energy projects, which are used raw materials such as palm oil to produce biodiesel, sugar cane, sugar loaf cane and cassava for the distillation of ethanol. Thus regional dynamics observed that intersect with the new rural environment in the Colombian countryside connection between the local and global that generate expectations to achieve rural development goals. Key words: biofuels, agro-energy policy, biodiesel, ethanol, rural development. El debate en torno a la política de agrocombustibles parte de dos posiciones: en primer lugar, quienes la consideran como una alternativa orientada a disminuir la dependencia de los combustibles fósiles y a aportar en la reducción de emisiones de gases efecto invernadero que contribuyen al calentamiento global; en segundo lugar, quienes discuten sobre los conflictos socio-ecológicos distributivos que puede traer la adopción de estas políticas a nivel local. En este artículo se presenta la configuración de la política nacional de agrocombustibles y sus escenarios productivos tomando como base los proyectos agroenergéticos en los que se emplean materias primas como palma de aceite para la producción de biodiesel, caña de azúcar, caña panelera y yuca para la destilación de etanol. De esta manera se observan dinámicas regionales que se entrecruzan con las nuevas ruralidades del campo colombiano en su conexión entre lo local y lo global, las cuales generan expectativas para alcanzar metas de desarrollo rural. Palabras clave: biocombustibles, política agroenergética, biodiesel, etanol, desarrollo rural

Man uses energy to produce order. The second law of thermodynamics requires that the energy used be degraded and that increased disorder (or entropy) results. This disorder can be thought of as environmental degradation and has been steadily increasing as a consequence of industrialization. World energy consumption is presently 10 TW which leads to an entropy increase of the order of 4TW. In addition, factors such as removal of vegetation cover result in an additional natural energy input removing soil cover. The total energy input devoted to environmental degradation as a result of man's activities is therefore substantial. This article challenges the view that environmental degradation (disorder) can be eliminated by better management. Rather, it emphasizes that environmental degradation is a corollary of human energy consumption and therefore of economic activity. This view is of importance in assessing the possible extent of environmental change in the Twenty-First Century and the remedies required to ameliorate the situation.

Development projects that aim to increase the numbers of trees for wood energy must first acquire a solid understanding of the quantity, form, and function of existing stocks of woody biomass. The author describes the methods and results of a survey undertaken in Kenya to assess wood stocks on individual farms, and on the basis of certain consumption assumptions, attempts to define the level of domestic woodfuel shortages.

This Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report (IPCC-SRREN) assesses the potential role of renewable energy in the mitigation of climate change. It covers the six most important renewable energy sources – bioenergy, solar, geothermal, hydropower, ocean and wind energy – as well as their integration into present and future energy systems. It considers the environmental and social consequences associated with the deployment of these technologies and presents strategies to overcome technical as well as non-technical obstacles to their application and diffusion. SRREN brings a broad spectrum of technology-specific experts together with scientists studying energy systems as a whole. Prepared following strict IPCC procedures, it presents an impartial assessment of the current state of knowledge: it is policy relevant but not policy prescriptive. SRREN is an invaluable assessment of the potential role of renewable energy for the mitigation of climate change for policymakers, the private sector and academic researchers.

The effect of spinosad on some biochemical characteristics of Xanthogaleruca luteola was investigated. LC30 and LC50 of spinosad for the third instar larvae were determined as 1.6 and 2.9 ppm, respectively. Biochemical tests were carried out on the 3rd instar larvae treated with LC30 and LC50 of spinosad. The LC30 concentration decreased carbohydrate and glycogen content and increased lipid content significantly. There was a significant decrease in carbohydrate, glycogen, and protein contents following the exposure to LC50 concentration. Available energy of the larvae exposed to LC30 of spinosad increased significantly, whereas it decreased significantly at LC50. However, the energy consumed was increased at both concentrations significantly. Cellular energy allocation of larvae treated with LC50 concentrations of spinosad decreased significantly. Glutathione-S-transferase and esterase activities were increased significantly at LC50. However, lipase activity was decreased at both concentrations.

The policy landscape is changing as Canada considers its energy future. The Canadian boreal zone has a large amount of natural resources, giving Canada options in terms of its energy future. However, the sustainability of the boreal zone has been deemed at risk because of the cumulative effects of intensifying natural resource activities (forestry, mining, oil and gas, and renewable energy) on ecosystems in the face of the uncertainty associated with climate change. As Canada considers the future of the boreal zone, there will be additional challenges to ensure that we do not further disadvantage marginalized human populations living in the boreal zone who are at high risk of the consequences of climate change. In response to these challenges, the Boreal 2050 project was initiated to understand the risk of failing to achieve the future sustainability of the boreal zone using the ISO 31000 risk management framework. First, we identified the major drivers of the risks to the sustainability of the boreal zone, which include atmospheric change, the demand for provisioning and nonprovisioning ecosystem services, demographics and societal values, industrial innovation and infrastructure, and governance. Second, we analyzed the risk of failing to achieve a sustainable boreal zone using scenario analysis, where we framed four plausible future scenarios around two axes of change: the global economy’s energy and society’s capacity to adapt. Third, we evaluated the risk and determined that present governance systems are driving Canada towards failing to achieve a sustainable boreal zone. To ensure the future sustainability of the boreal, we need to shift from an oil/gas/coal-producing country to a renewable energy leader and shift from using a top-down strategy where Canadians have a low capacity to adapt towards a mixture of top-down and bottom-up participatory strategies where Canadians—particularly Indigenous peoples living in the boreal zone—have a higher capacity to adapt. To facilitate this shift in governance, substantive changes will be required in institutional arrangements designed to protect boreal ecosystems.

Navigating on the Titanic outlines the brief history of economic growth and the private and public institutions - markets, corporations, households, and governments - which underpin that growth. Bryne Purchase examines mega-risks related to our economy's use of fossil fuels and specifically looks at resource depletion, energy security, and climate change - all \"mega-risks\" because they are both global in scope and potentially existential in impact. Focusing on North America, with a particular emphasis on the United States, Purchase's central argument is that the institutions which have produced spectacular economic growth are not capable of acting with prudence to deal with these mega-risks before they become a real danger. He identifies certain institutional design flaws that, while underwriting economic growth, leave society open to potentially catastrophic failure and reveals how these design flaws have been compounded by the stresses of the growing income inequality in society.