Point One: Transportation. America's most immediate energy problem is a liquid fuels issue affecting the transportation sector. Bail out the Big 3 auto makers only if they agree to stop producing any passenger vehicle that does not get at least 25 mpg and give them greater incentives to build vehicles that get 40+ mpg. 60% of all daily vehicle usage in the U.S. consists of less than 30 miles of travel. Plug in hybrid vehicles use an electric motor for travel up to 40 miles before the gasoline engine kicks in, which reduces gasoline usage so that some vehicles can even get up to 100 mpg. BUT, we are still using foreign oil. By using existing technology, not unproven theory, we can create plug in hybrids that run on electricity and domestic natural gas, not gasoline made from foreign drilled oil. Today we have a supply of 118 years worth of natural gas in America. Follow this plan and there will be enough natural gas for 300 plus years – and no foreign oil will be used. Stop sending $600 billion to $1.5 trillion out of the U.S. every year.
Point Two: Solar. One-half of all solar panels manufactured in the world go to Germany. Why? Because of German feed-in-tariff legislation that makes it financially beneficial for homes and businesses to install solar equipment. Eight U.S. states are contemplating similar legislation, and a local variety of this plan is being implemented in Gainesville, Florida. Make Congress pass federal legislation mandating the same plan and provide financing to new solar panel manufacturers. Widespread use of solar will create millions of jobs in the U.S. in manufacturing, installation, and maintenance. Use of solar in federal and state buildings should be mandated NOW, so that government leads the way. Extend the 2008 Economic Stimulus Act provisions that provide tax incentives for commercial solar and implement the financing plan used by some municipalities to help finance solar for residential use. Create government loan guarantees like the ones used by the Small Business Administration to finance solar equipment.
Point Three: Wind Power. The wind corridor from New Mexico/Texas north through the Dakotas can produce enough wind power to generate electricity not only for all of the United States, but for all of Canada and Mexico. Wouldn’t it be nice to export power for a change? Wind power infrastructure will also create millions of jobs in the U.S. and must be built to distribute the power throughout the country. This is the world’s cheapest and fastest-growing new energy source, along with being clean and renewable. Make Congress provide incentives for wind power infrastructure the way it did for the telecommunications infrastructure and the way it provided subsidies to oil companies for decades.
The Alternative Energy Association is in the process of planning the creation of 50 state chapters, along with multiple college-based chapters. These state and college chapters will be charged with the responsibility of working with their state’s members of House and Senate, state legislatures and local governments to create legislation to make this happen on a grassroots basis. More >>>
