Perspectives on achieving sustainable energy production and use

The traditional definition of sustainability calls for policies and strategies that meet society's present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Through the 1970 National Environmental Policy Act, U. S. policy formally established the goal of creating and maintaining "conditions under which [humans] and nature can exist in productive harmony, and fulfill the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations of Americans." However, we have not yet succeeded in making sustainability operational. The long-standing and current debates on setting energy policy, regulating greenhouse gases, and promoting alternate fuels illustrate the complexity of making sustainability operational. Achieving operational sustainability requires three critical elements: advances in science and technology, application of effective government regulations and policies, and green business practices. Not only are these elements necessary, all three must work together across the economy. A key lesson drawn from the history of environmental regulation and especially in the climate debate is that sustainability cannot be advanced without a convergence of government and business interests even when the requisite technology is available. The biofuel system presents an immediate and tangible test case for the successful interaction of these three critical elements. The massive investments in science and technology by both government and industry to develop new feedstocks and conversion methods are showing promise. From a regulatory perspective, existing statutes and new mandates impact all parts of the biofuel supply chain-a complex system involving feedstocks, conversion technologies, transport, storage, handling, and end use. Forward-looking businesses in the biofuel sector are integrating sustainability objectives into their business strategies, such as designing feedstock conversion processes to generate biofuel coproducts that can add substantial revenue. The combination and coordination of such activities have the potential to achieve sustainable biofuel production and to demonstrate the kind of critical approaches that are essential to making sustainability operational in this and other energy sectors. (C) 2010 U.S. Government. [doi: 10.1063/1.3384210]