State for Alternatives: So Should the Nation

November 27, 2005 – Vol.10 No.36

STATE FOR ALTERNATIVES: SO SHOULD THE NATION.

Governor Edward Rendell (D) of Pennsylvania is asking President Bush to take steps to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources and has delivered an outline to do so.

An American Energy Harvest plan, using the same kind of government involvement that his state is using to develop alternative energy in its own Pennsylvania Energy Harvest plan, the nation could reduce its imports to 53 percent in ten years, instead of reaching an expected 66 percent.

An American Energy Harvest plan would also create jobs, boost the nation’s entrepreneurial activities, reduce the trade deficit and improve domestic security.

Gov. Rendell included the following steps for the federal government to follow:

--- Use its regulatory power to require greater reliance on alternative fuels by utilities and energy companies;

--- Use its purchasing power to stimulate private investment in alternative fuel production and fuel saving technologies; and

--- Redirect subsidies enacted before the energy companies began making extraordinary profits (this year) and allocate those funds to alternative fuel production.

The Governor said that if it were enacted, by 2015 his plan would create the incentives for an installed capacity of 100,000 MW of wind power and 10,000 MW of solar electricity. One million barrels a day of fuel would be produced from biofuels, 500,000 barrels per day of oil would be conserved by hybrid technology for federal and state fleet vehicles, and 2.5 million barrels per day of fuel produced in the U.S. would come from clean coal plants.

Rendell also outlined the benefits of Pennsylvania’s own Energy Harvest model which included attracting Spanish wind turbine maker Gamesa to the state. Visit the state of Pennsylvania at http://www.state.pa.us/ .