27 April 2005David Hamilton
In his Washington speech today, President Bush is expected to offer up "new" energy ideas that are anything but new - they are old, outdated, obsolete energy policies that depend on last-century technology and polluting sources of energy.
At least they are being consistent in Washington: The President is making this speech exactly one week after the House of Representatives passed the Energy Policy Act - a bill that threatens to open up our coasts and special places to oil development, lets big business polluters off the hook for cleaning up the messes they make, funnels billions of dollars in subsidies to outdated dirty industries like coal, oil and nuclear power, and fails to offer the clean, visionary solutions that Americans want
Despite repeated promises by the President and Congress to move America into the 21st century -- Washington once again has failed to offer us an energy policy that lowers energy prices, creates jobs, and curbs our dependence on foreign oil. Instead they are serving up energy programs that help industry, step on state's right and thumb a nose at sound science:
At a time when oil companies are making record profits, the federal government does not need to subsidize the construction of new refineries. The current lack of refinery capacity is the result of a conscious decision by the oil industry in the 1990s to limit the supply to increase profits. The lack of refinery capacity is not due to environmental regulations, as some reports say - it is due to the oil industry itself. The only long term solution to lowering how much consumers pay at the gas pump is to reduce demand. The good news is that we have the technology today to make all vehicles - from sedans, to SUVs to pickup trucks - go farther on a gallon of gas.
The President's plan would take power away from states and communities to site liquefied natural gas ports and put it in the hands of federal agencies. This is wrong - states and local communities deserve a say to decisions that affect the health and security of their families.
At a time when the Bush administration's own scientists are saying that Yucca Mountain is not safe, it does not make sense to build a new generation of nuclear power plants when we have no place to store the waste, and we have cheaper, cleaner ways to provide electricity for our families.
This week the President met with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, and today he is offering handouts to polluting energy industries- while Americans are still left without an energy plan that reduces our oil dependence, curbs global warming, lowers gasoline and natural gas prices, or increases our security.
It's time to re-energize America with a smarter, safer, cleaner, and cheaper energy policy. We can light and heat our homes with safer, cleaner wind or solar power. We have the technology to make all cars go 40 miles per gallon within ten years, saving more oil than the U.S. currently imports from the Persian Gulf or could ever take from the National Wildlife Refuge, combined. We can improve the energy efficiency of our homes, businesses and appliances - putting money in our wallets and keeping the environment clean. We can protect our children from the air pollution that spews from cars and power plants. We can protect our coasts and the wildlands left to us for safekeeping. All we need now is leaders who will put people ahead of corporations and act now to create a legacy that we will be proud to leave our children.
