In my work as a contributing editor for DocuTicker, I research publicly available reports on a number of global topics. Here are some of my favourite resources for energy:
Energy
is a critical issue from many angles, whether environmental, economic,
scientific, social or political. The
range of information sources that might be drawn upon is equally large. An article of this size can therefore be only
an introduction that at least gives some useful pointers.
Energy
has both national and international dimensions. UN Datais very useful
on the national level. Under Country Data
Services are links to the official statistics service of each country. Alternatively, the Energy Statistics Databasepresents the figures primarily in respect
of the energy source (e.g. geothermal, lignite/brown coal) and then by country
over a number of years. And although it
is necessary to acknowledge that its coverage can be patchy, Wikipedia's Energy by Country page
can be a helpful start.
America's
foreign policy is clearly related to its needs as the world's biggest energy
consumer. It is therefore understandable
that, as well as being a prime source for domestic statistics, the U.S. Energy Information Administration
(EIA) is a powerhouse of information on the rest of the world through its Country Energy Profiles.
A
very full collection of British statistics can be found on the Department of Energy and Climate Change
website, with figures by energy source and also for energy consumption by region and
local authority.
More
broadly, statistics across Europe are available through Eurostat's Energy Portal:
Panorama of Energy (PDF) is the key statistical work. Many more
publications covering aspects of European energy production and use can be
found via the EU Bookshop, where Energy has a searchable section in its own right.
Globally,
the International Energy Agency (IEA), part of the OECD, is a key factor. One of its leading publications is the World Energy Outlook. Although the full work has to be paid for,
the Executive Summary (PDF) is freely available, as are the fact sheets (PDF) derived from it.
The
basic division of energy sources is between fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural
gas), nuclear power and renewables (e.g. solar, wind, biomass).
The US
Department of Energy provides brief introductions to all of the
various types, with links to governmental offices and laboratories which can
yield additional information. It is
complemented by the facts and figures provided by the EIA.
The MIT Energy Initiativeis a good summary of the qualities of alternative energy sources
Concentrating on the renewables sector, EREC(European Renewable Energy Council) provides a list of the websites of the continent's trade associations, which in
turn serve as good sources on such topics as wind power(PDF) and ocean energy (PDF). Reports like these are important for
their in-depth assessment of a particular energy source, and its potential
contribution to a future which will inevitably require a range of sources as
demands continue to increase worldwide and some sources gradually diminish.
Concerning
resource depletion, the specialist news aggregator Energy Bulletin, although starting from a concern with the implications of peak oil
(explaining the issue in its Peak Oil
Primer), also
has many stories on other resources and regions, although they are not as
separated out from other stories as one would expect.
A more general energy news aggregator which
pulls in stories from all over the world is World Energy Sources, a channel of
the World News Network.
Nonetheless,
even while a search for alternatives to oil is an important area of scientific
research, it remains a critical energy source in today's world. The IEA is responsible for Oil Market Report, an overview of
current developments which has an archive of figures back to 1990 on such
matters as Demand, Supply and Stocks.
OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) is another rich source of data and reports, and issues its own Monthly Oil Market Report (PDF).
How
vital oil remains is demonstrated by the current (March 2010) dispute between
Argentina and the UK over the latter's exploration for oil in the region of the
Falkland Islands/Malvinas. A number of
papers, reports and legal measures related to this are given by the Falkland
Islands' Department of Mineral Resources; significantly, this is part of the website of the British Geological Survey,
suggesting how at least some geological work feeds into energy discovery and
thus the wider economy. From this
perspective it may therefore also be worth examining the work of other
geological surveys. A list of these has
been put together by the UC Berkeley
Library.
Such
disputes are one aspect of the whole question of energy security. The
Journal of Energy Securityis focused on
this issue and provides detailed full-text articles, with an archive back to
October 2008.
A
symptom of the search for alternatives to oil is the fact that nuclear power is
experiencing renewed interest, as shown both by the MIT report, The Future of Nuclear Power
and, in the UK, the creation of the Nuclear Development Forum, which includes presentations and minutes of the meetings of the NDF.
Energy
is such a vital need that it engenders political controversy, vested interests
and slanted advocacy. Although the
sources given above are offered in good faith, it's necessary to warn that in
this field the principles of critical reading and checking a variety of sources
are especially important.
Having
begun his career in academic libraries, Adrian Janes is currently an
Information Services Librarian with the London Borough of Havering. In
this role, he has particular responsibility for information from both
the UK Government and the European Union.
He wrote a detailed report on sources for the latter which was
published by Free Pint Ltd. in 2007. He is also involved in training and
publicising online reference resources and is a contributor editor to DocuTicker.
The FreePint Family is a family of resources to help information workers be more effective, raise the value of information in their organisations and contribute to success.
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