Climate and Energy Resources for State, Local and Tribal Governments

AVERT Tutorial: Overview

Overview

AVERT is a tool that estimates the SO2, NOx, and CO2 emissions impacts of EE/RE programs in the continental United States. Specifically, AVERT combines historical hourly generation data with EE/RE load impact profiles to enable you to:

  • Compare the emissions benefits of different types of EE/RE programs or technologies.
  • Incorporate EE/RE policies and programs into state implementation plans for the National Ambient Air Quality Standards with the concurrence of appropriate EPA Regional Office.
  • Estimate emission impacts during peak energy demand periods in a historical year or near-term future year.

It is important to note that AVERT should be used only to assess EE/RE impacts—not to assess changes to an electric generating unit (EGU) fleet. For example, AVERT is not equipped to examine changes in emissions that result from retirements, changes to heat rates, or specific fuel changes. AVERT uses data based on historical dispatch patterns and cannot credibly estimate emissions reductions resulting from changes to the overall pattern of dispatch.

AVERT operates in a basic desktop environment and is freely available, requiring no proprietary data or assumptions to operate.

Learn about how AVERT works in greater detail by clicking the "Next" arrow.  
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