The U.S. needs a new national energy policy that encourages conservation, use of renewable fuels (solar), and discourages and phases out polluting fuels such as coal and nuclear. Some sort of fossil-fuel tax (on gasoline, fuel oil, coal, and natural gas) is needed to finance this conversion. We must develop clean, low-impact technologies and help them get implemented in other nations as well, perhaps through some sort of 'Global Energy Peace Corps'.
After the 1991 Persian Gulf Oil War, US politicians began to address the need for comprehensive national energy planning. The Bush Administration announced its own National Energy Strategy - but environmentalists are calling it nothing more than a wish list for the oil and nuclear companies. The Bush plan would push for drilling in the Alaska Arctic Refuge, and make it very easy to license new nuclear power plants. It would allow existing nuclear power plants to operate for an additional 20 years beyond the original 40 year design life of these plants, a very risky gamble. The metal used inside nuclear plants becomes fatigued and brittle as a result of high neutron bombardment during operation. The Bush plan offers little to promote efficient energy use (it opposes higher mileage standards for new cars), and does not encourage the development of alternative (solar) energy sources.
Senators Bennett Johnston (LA) and Malcolm Wallop (WY) introduced a comprehensive energy bill, but the Johnston-Wallop bill also calls for drilling in Alaska's Arctic Refuge and offshore on the Outer Continental Shelf. This bill will increase the chances of more damaging oil spills in sensitive arctic and coastal areas, and is actively opposed by environmentalists.
In early 1991, Senator Tim Wirth (CO) introduced S 741, the National Energy Efficiency and Development Act. This bill has the support of many environmental groups. Wirth's bill stresses efficient energy use, which will reduce oil consumption and greenhouse gases, and does NOT permit drilling in the Arctic Refuge. It has been estimated that S 741 would SAVE 7 MILLION BARRELS OF OIL EACH DAY by the year 2010! In introducing his bill, Sen. Wirth explained, " First we must promote energy efficiency and conservation. Second, our energy strategy must complement our environmental goals. Finally, it must take a balanced approach and be based on long term planning."
Your support for S 741 is needed now. Please write your Senators, ask them to support S 741. ***
