Alternative energy solutions for
the nations future
Congressman Niki
Tsongas
Whether Im in Washington, DC, or at
home in Massachusetts, I hear about and
see the challenges that we are all facing
as a result of the skyrocketing cost of
gas every single day. This should not be
an issue used to score political points -
we need solutions. For some, high gas
prices mean postponing a planned vacation
or changing the way they commute to work.
For many others, it means making
unacceptable decisions between paying for
gas or having to forgo basic necessities
such as food or medicine.
The escalation of gas prices also
threatens our national security as we
continue to rely on many of the least
politically stable regions of the world
to supply our energy.
We face a serious and lasting challenge:
the worlds demand for energy will
increase at a greater rate than what oil
can supply. We must address current high
prices, mitigate the costs that are
inevitable as we transition to
alternative energy sources, and provide a
long term, comprehensive solution for
American energy independence that relies
upon Americas ingenuity and
resources.
Some of the components of this
comprehensive energy strategy can be
found in our backyard. Local employers
are developing alternative energy
technologies reliant upon the hydrogen
fuel cell or solar power. Fuel cell
technology being advanced in the
Merrimack Valley has the potential to
power everything from home appliances to
cars with far greater efficiency than
traditional power sources, while
simultaneously creating jobs.
Other technologies such as plug-in
hybrids vehicles, which will soon be
coming to the market, can help ease the
pain at the pump. Due to the tremendous
benefits these technologies hold and how
close they are to fruition, we should
help these emerging industries bridge the
final hurdles to being competitive so
that their products can become broadly
available.
I was proud to cosponsor legislation
passed by the House earlier this year
that will greatly expand tax incentives
for renewable electricity, energy and
fuel, as well as for plug-in hybrid
vehicles. Unfortunately, the President
has threatened to veto these commonsense
measures. Research and development
incentives are critical to helping
alternative technologies grow and
allowing the American consumer to access
them. They should be made available
immediately.
It is also important that we advance
measures that encourage greater fuel
efficacy and conservation. Last year, the
Congress passed and the President signed
into law the first increase in the miles
per gallon standard for automobiles in 32
years. While increased fuel efficiency
standards are a good start they wont
help Americans at the pump for many
years.
In the short term there are several steps
that should be taken to help families
bear high fuel costs. The first involves
curtailing excessive speculation on oil
futures which has increased the cost of
oil by as much as $20 - $60 per barrel.
Since 2003, this practice has increased
425 percent and prevents millions of
barrels of oil from coming to market.
Congress recently approved legislation
that was signed into law to temporarily
suspend purchases for our Strategic
Petroleum Reserve. Such a move will allow
more than 70,000 barrels of oil to remain
on the world market each day, helping
decrease the cost of gasoline by up to
.25 cents per gallon.
Urgent effort is also needed to construct
effective safety nets for those who are
truly put in danger by the high cost of
fuel. Last week, I joined with the
majority of my colleagues from the New
England Delegation in requesting that
Congress triple the amount of funding for
the Low Income Home Energy Assistance
Program (LIHEAP), a program which helps
low-income families pay to heat their
homes in winter.
Eligibility for the LIHEAP program should
also be expanded, as increasing numbers
of families will need assistance this
winter.
One thing we should not do is assume that
we can end our foreign oil dependence by
simply increasing domestic oil drilling.
The President has recently proposed
lifting the moratorium on oil drilling
off our coasts, claiming that it will
allow us to achieve energy independence.
The unfortunate reality is that we cant
drill our way to lower gas prices when we
use a quarter of the worlds oil,
but sit atop less than 2% of the worlds
supply.
Additionally, it would take more than a
decade to bring oil in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge and on our
coasts to market. Even then it would not
reduce the cost of gas by more than a few
pennies according to Energy Information
Administration at the Department of
Energy.
Those who advocate for more drilling
should know that it is not Congress or
the President who has the power to
increase domestic production. Oil
companies currently lease more than 68
million acres of public lands. Another 20
million acres of land in the National
Petroleum Reserve in Alaska are ready for
development now, and contain more oil
than ANWR.
Oil companies have thus far been
unwilling to drill on this leased land
and will give no assurances that they
will do so on the additional federal land
if it is opened to them. With oil trading
at more than $130 per barrel and oil
companies setting record profits, there
is little incentive for them to take on
the financial risks of increased
drilling. Our energy policy must include
more solutions than simply drilling for a
limited supply of oil that will have a
small impact on price for a short period
of time.
Our current and future demand for energy
will increase at a greater rate than what
fossil fuels can supply. We need a
comprehensive solution to overcome this
challenge that includes a broad portfolio
of energy options.
The development of alternative energy
technologies, relying on clean, renewable
sources here in the United States and on
American ingenuity, is the long term
solution we need. Unlike increased
dependence on oil, this strategy has the
benefit of being sustainable, enhancing
national security, and producing American
jobs and growing the American economy.
Niki Tsongas is in her
first term in the United States Congress.
She was elected to fill the term of
Congressman Marty Meehan who resigned
between terms. Tsongas is seeking
reelection in November. E-mail
Congressman Tsongas offfice at:
tsongas.house.gov
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