03/03/2011

MIT Releases Public Version of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Model

Summary

DOE scientists at MIT have released a publicly available version of a major component of the Integrated Global Systems Model (IGSM). IGSM is a comprehensive integrated assessment model, one of six such models in the world designed to explore the interactions between humans and the climate system, including the causes of global climate change and the potential societal and environmental consequences of such change. A major component of IGSM, Emissions Prediction and Policy Analysis (EPPA), is a multi-sector, multi-region computable general equilibrium (CGE) model of the world economy. EPPA projects economic variables (e.g., GDP, energy use, sectoral output, and consumption) and emissions of greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs, and SF6) and other air pollutants (CO, VOC, NOx, SO2, NH3, black carbon, and organic carbon) from combustion of carbon-based fuels, industrial processes, waste handling, and agricultural and other land-use activities. The licensed version of EPPA is available for non-commercial use with the intent of increasing transparency and advancing the development of new methods in integrated assessment research.

References

EPPA 4 Public Release License Agreement (February 9, 2011, version at: Link). Adapted from Paltsev, S., J. M. Reilly, H. D. Jacoby, R. S. Eckaus, J. McFarland, M. Sarofim, M. Asadoorian, and M. Babiker. 2005.

The MIT Emissions Prediction and Policy Analysis (EPPA) Model: Version 4, MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change Report 125, Cambridge, MA. Link