Newswise — U.S. states, as well as countries around the world, must grapple with a number of questions when looking at alternative power generation sources. Especially important are impacts on the economy and whether the domestic workforce, industry and government will be capable of operating, regulating and servicing nuclear power plants.
Dr. David Solan, director of the Energy Policy Institute at Boise State University, is an expert in energy issues. He is the Principal Investigator for more than $3 million in collaborative research grants and contracts from the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, the Western Governors’ Association, the State of Idaho, and the Idaho National Laboratory, among others.
Solan recently has been invited to head up a Statistical Working Group for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The group has been tasked with developing a prototype decision support tool for countries evaluating their power generation options.
“Countries considering new electric power generation infrastructure need to consider a wide variety of factors,” Solan said, including population, public support, the amount of generation needed, climate and geography. The tool Solan and his team are working on will help individual countries make these determinations and ultimately make comparisons to other generation choices, such as renewables and fossil fuels.
Dr. Solan has worked as a senior advisor at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on management and energy issues. He also served as an energy policy specialist on a committee and directed a legislative office in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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