Here is a short summary of Bush’s Enron Energy Policy as outlined in a speech on June 15th.
Thanks.
Supporting Energy efficiency is critical for the future of America.
Increasing energy efficiency saves money and will make us less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
I’m optimistic about the future, and have reason to be. More americans are working and owning homes than ever, and we want to increase those numbers. Private accounts are good for America.
Small businesses factories and families are doing well. Our economy is growing. Millions of Americans are prospering.
WE need to make prices reasonable at the pump. High gas prices are hurting America, and we have to deal with that.
Global oil demand is outstripping supply, and America is too dependent on foreign oil. In the past we made 3/4 of our oil, but now 2/3 is coming from foreign sources. Developing countries are making prices go up.
Foreigners are taxing the American Dream. I am doing everything to ease the problem: increasing oil production. We are going to protect consumers from price gouging.
We need a comprehensive energy policy, which I developed when I first got into office. Congress failed to act on that policy, so I demand that congress put a ‘good’ bill on my desk on my desk before August.
The house has acted and the senate is sitting on their hands.
This bill will not help right away, but we cannot wait until the problem gets worse. There are 4 steps we need to take to address the root causes of high gas prices and to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
- Improve efficiency and conservation.
- Hybrids – $4000 tax rebate
- Clean Diesel
- Produce and refine more domestically.
- Arctic National WIldlife Refuge– will produce 1 million barrels a day and pass a pro-growth, pro-jobs, pro-environment development of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
- More Refining – EPA will reduce regulation for refinery expansion. Build more refineries on closed military facilities with ‘simplified’ permitting.
- Develop alternatives to Gas and Diesel
- Hydrogen – $240 million/year hydrogen subsidies with more in the energy bill.
- Ethanol & Biodiesel – $84 million in 2006 to make ethanol from farms forest and dumps.
- Help other nations use technology to reduce their demand
Along with high gas prices, we have higher electricity bills.
To help we have to improve conservation and efficiency.
- Keep the Energy Star program.
- Americans spent 1/2 as much on heating in 2001 as in 1978
- “One day, technologies like solar panels and high-efficiency appliances and advanced insulation could even allow us to build “zero-energy homes” that produce as much energy as they consume.”
Harness power of technology to deliver electricity more efficiently:
- Super-conducting power lines.
- Bring electrical grid into the 21st century.
Generate more electricity:
* Coal – we have enough to last 250 years. But it is dirty, so I promised to invest $200 million/year over 10 years to clean coal, and have delivered $300 million/year over 5 years. There is no doubt in my mind we can burn coal in environmentally friendly ways.
Congress must pass the Clear Skies initiative, as it is sound policy. It wil not only clean the environment, but will result in $10s of billions in private clean coal investments.
* Natural Gas
WE have the 6th largest proven reserves in the world. We need to increase eco-friendly extraction of natural gas from federal lands. Congress needs to give federal authority over site choice for liquified natural gas receiving terminal location.
* Nuclear Power
WE need to expand nuclear power. France gets 78% of its power from low cost, safe, nuclear plants. I told the Energy Department to help congress pass legislation to ‘reduce uncertainty in the nuclear plant liscensing process’ and I am telling “congress to provide other incentives such as federal insurance to protect the builders of the first four new plants against lawsuits, bureaucratic obstacles, and other delays beyond their control.”
The goal is to address the root causes of higher energy costs by diversifying our energy supply and reducing our dependence of foreign sources of energy. We have got to act today. No more debate; aciton.
We may comprises on outstanding issues such as MTBE. But for the sake of national security and for the sake of economic security, the Congress needs to pass an energy bill now.
Now is the time to act. American innovation will protect our children and our future.
May God bless you all.
We need to crucify this horribly one dimensional ‘comprehensive’ energy policy.
We should be able to hit home runs off of this crap all day long.
Here are a couple things that slap me in the face:
Doesn’t that mean that Federal parks, not just the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, are going to be fouled?
congress pass legislation to ‘reduce uncertainty in the nuclear plant
liscensing process’ and I am telling “congress to provide other
incentives such as federal insurance to protect the builders of the
first four new plants against lawsuits, bureaucratic obstacles, and
other delays beyond their control.”
I was under the impression that Nuclear power already had issues with
lax regulation and lax enforcement of safety checks. The people are
going to insure these companies? If they are so safe, why do we need to
protect them.
The lack of true renewables, or non-combustible means of energy production seem to me a bit regressive.
Surely we can do better.
There is no safe disposal of nuclear waste anywhere.
If anyone can point me in the direction of safe, reliable storage of nuclear waste, I would appreciate it. Even “the perfect energy solution” for France has problems with disposal of nuclear waste which lasts for thousands of years.
Then there are the environmental risks of uranium mining.
And George wants to
http://www.ucsusa.org :
Company and NRC officials were quoted as being surprised by the nature and extent of the damage to the reactor vessel head at Davis-Besse. There were similar statements of surprise last summer about the nature and extent of damage to the CRDM nozzles at the Oconee nuclear plant, about the nature and extent of the damage to the steam generator tube at the Indian Point 2 nuclear plant in February 2000, about the nature and extent of the damage to the hot leg piping at the Summer nuclear plant later in 2000, about the nature and extent of the damage to the core shroud at the Nine Mile Point nuclear plant in 1997, and so on. Child-like wonderment is endearing on Christmas morning. It is dangerously irresponsible when consistently applied to nuclear safety.
Davis Besse, ON THE SHORES OF LAKE ERIE! is a prime example of some of the problems with the way that the nuclear power industry has operated in the recent past.
Bush’s Enron Energy policy seeks to further deregulate and protect them.
It is unbelievable, and should be a big fat target for smart Democrats who want to win.
Additional background…
http://www.ohiocitizen.org/campaigns/electric/nucfront.html
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/nuclear_safety/page.cfm?pageID=1133
http://tinyurl.com/9k7jd (google search)
Thank you for these links!
I am astonished that many (so-called) environmentalists
are supporting nuclear energy. None have satisfied my
concerns over safety and especially waste disposal when
they discuss ‘clean’ nuclear power.
Even the normal ‘safe’ operation of the plants emits radiation.
The worst thing about the whole Davis Besse fiasco is that it sits RIGHT ON LAKE ERIE, and smack dab in the middle of the largest fresh water supply on the planet.
If Davis Besse goes up it will take the most precious natural resource we have with it.
I despair.
Where’s the media on this?
Arctic National WIldlife Refuge- will produce 1 million barrels a day and pass a pro-growth, pro-jobs, pro-environment development of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. LIES!
Will produce 1 million barrels a day?
ANWAR PRODUCTION UNCERTAINTIES
The size of the underlying resource base. Because there has been little petroleum drilling or exploration in ANWAR there is little first hand knowledge regarding the petroleum geology of the region. The USGS oil resource estimates are based on the geologic conditions that exist in the neighboring state lands. Consequently, there is considerable uncertainty regarding both the size and quality of the oil resources that exist in ANWAR. Thus the potential ultimate oil recovery and potential yearly production are uncertain.
Don’t let this happen.
One thing to remember with the Bush League is that “eco” = “e co” = “energy corporations”. So when they talk about “eco-friendly” policies, they mean “energy corporation friendly” policies.
(And “eco-terrorism” is any sort of opposition to energy corporations.)
Eco was my term, but that is some nice wordplay.