Overview of the role of data for energy systems

Growing worldwide societal concerns about critical issues such as the environment, energy sources and supply have created new demands for systematic, authoritative information as a basis for decision making and regulation. Therefore, consideration given to numerical data for energy systems must include data related to the consequences of providing an adequate supply of energy for the societal good. This paper briefly mentions some major data systems, and plans for national and international data networking. In addition, other data activities are introduced that are concerned with issues related to environmental hazards due to burning of fossil fuels and to nuclear safety.