|
U.S. Energy Policy, 1/1/07
Key Lecture Points:
• Congress is again visiting the issue of US Energy policy and appears poised to pass new energy legislation that would eliminate some federal subsidies of domestic oil companies and channel the estimated $14 billion into research and development of renewable energy programs.
• Meanwhile, in Colorado, Governor Ritter has declared his intention to make the state a focal point in energy development: "We as a state can play a real role in providing leadership for this country in developing renewable energy," Ritter said after his inauguration.
• Such proposals have bi-partisan support, but are not without their detractors who argue that the current sources of energy can be made cleaner and more efficient without the cost associated with developing new energy source infrastructure.
• Any debate about energy policy comes against a backdrop of increased US energy consumption and reliance upon foreign sources and fossil fuels. Over the past 50 years, US Energy consumption has risen steadily, such that today the US consumes 21/2 times what it consumed in 1955.
• Taken as a whole, however, the United States consumes far more energy than it produces. The US imports 30% of its total energy consumption, almost entirely petroleum. This represents a 35% increase in energy importation in the past ten years. The reliance upon foreign energy sources (again, mostly oil) makes US Energy policy not just a domestic policy matter, but also a matter touching upon US foreign policy. Many argue that the US must become energy self-sufficient both for domestic economic reasons and for reasons of national and international security.
• Additionally, fully 86% of US energy is derived from the burning of fossil fuels (coal, natural gas and petroleum). As the discussion of greenhouse gas emissions heightens, many who argue for a change in US energy policy are focused on the need for the United States to move toward a greater reliance upon energy sources that do not produce CO2.
• The energy which the nation consumes comes from a number of sources: coal, natural gas, petroleum, nuclear power, and a variety of renewable energy sources. Any discussion of a unified energy policy must include a discussion of each of these energy sources, its potential benefits and detriments, and finally an acknowledgment of the politics of the energy source.
For More Information:
• On US Energy Consumption: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/aer/pdf/pages/sec1.pdf
• On US Energy Policy: http://www.cfr.org/publication/11694/energy_policy_conundrum.html
Books For Further Reading:
• Rutledge, Ian. Addicted to Oil: America’s Relentless Drive for Energy Security. I.B. Tauris & Co., 2006. 288 pages.
Description: Rutledge explores the political, economic and social ramifications of the motorization of the US economy and examines the ways in which America's dependence on the car has created oil needs which have heavily influenced US foreign policy.
Click here to order.
• Goldstein, David B. Saving Energy, Growing Jobs: How Environmental Protection Promotes Economic Growth, Profitability, Innovation and Competition. Bay Tree Publishing, 2007. 333 pages.
Description: Goldstein argues that well-conceived environmental regulations create more jobs and contribute to more efficient designs and less expensive products.
Click here to order.
|
