The State of the Union on Energy

In his State of the Union Address, President Bush called for an energy agenda having these main points:

1) Greater use of coal, solar, wind and nuclear
2) Battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles
3) Expand the use of clean diesel vehicles
4) Greater emphasis on cellulosic ethanol
5) Reduce gasoline usage by 20 percent in the next ten years by
5a) Setting a mandatory Fuels Standard of 35 billion
gallons of renewable and alternative fuels in 2017
5b) Adopting fuel economy standards for cars to conserve
eight and a half billion gallons of gasoline by 2017

I don't really have any objection to these points, except to say that I think we could reduce gasoline consumption by more than 20% by having even higher economy standards for cars and a really good push on batteries and plug-ins, electric cars ought to be included, we ought to include butanol and geothermal in our stable of renewable fuels, we need an a greater effort on more efficient power transmission technologies if we are going to take full advantage of renewable energy sources and we should place a high priority on energy storage technologies.

The best way to encourage better batteries would be to require the post office to replace its fleet with electric vans and require the other government agencies to use efficient hybrids. By the time laws were enacted and RFP's written a couple of years would pass by and the technology would be even better.

The only money we need to spend on coal technology is to encourage IGCC plants and carbon capture technologies, this program is pretty well in place, if more money would speed it up all the better. Getting the money that has been authorized into the budget and released is probable all that is needed.

I know that increased use of coal and nuclear will be controversial among many of my readers, but I don't see any way other technologies can take their place in the next 25 to 50 years. I am sure there are those of you that think that government spending for energy technologies is not necessary, that market forces would provide all the incentives that are needed. This is too much of a risk. The cost of our liquid fuels are increasing at too high a rate, despite the recent lull, and if we are not to have drastic economic effects we must push on with alternative energy sources before this happens. All the money we need for these programs could come from reducing the subsidies on hydrogen, fuel cells and the oil industry.

The complete text of his six paragraphs on energy policy are found in the continuation:

"Extending hope and opportunity depends on a stable supply of energy that keeps America's economy running and America's environment clean. For too long our Nation has been dependent on foreign oil. And this dependence leaves us more vulnerable to hostile regimes, and to terrorists - who could cause huge disruptions of oil shipments ... raise the price of oil ... and do great harm to our economy.

It is in our vital interest to diversify America's energy supply - and the way forward is through technology. We must continue changing the way America generates electric power - by even greater use of clean coal technology ... solar and wind energy ... and clean, safe nuclear power. We need to press on with battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles, and expand the use of clean diesel vehicles and biodiesel fuel. We must continue investing in new methods of producing ethanol - using everything from wood chips, to grasses, to agricultural wastes.

We have made a lot of progress, thanks to good policies in Washington and the strong response of the market. Now even more dramatic advances are within reach. Tonight, I ask Congress to join me in pursuing a great goal. Let us build on the work we have done and reduce gasoline usage in the United States by 20 percent in the next ten years - thereby cutting our total imports by the equivalent of three-quarters of all the oil we now import from the Middle East.

To reach this goal, we must increase the supply of alternative fuels, by setting a mandatory Fuels Standard to require 35 billion gallons of renewable and alternative fuels in 2017 - this is nearly five times the current target. At the same time, we need to reform and modernize fuel economy standards for cars the way we did for light trucks - and conserve up to eight and a half billion more gallons of gasoline by 2017.

Achieving these ambitious goals will dramatically reduce our dependence on foreign oil, but will not eliminate it. So as we continue to diversify our fuel supply, we must also step up domestic oil production in environmentally sensitive ways. And to further protect America against severe disruptions to our oil supply, I ask Congress to double the current capacity of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

America is on the verge of technological breakthroughs that will enable us to live our lives less dependent on oil. These technologies will help us become better stewards of the environment - and they will help us to confront the serious challenge of global climate change."

The complete text of the speech can be found here.