Barack Obama's program for the environment and energy is quiet an aggressive one and includes many provisions which would benefit the renewable energy industry.
As part of this policy there would be a willingness on his behalf to reach out to other countries previously not as intricately involved in the setting of emissions targets process up to this point . Part of this policy would see him giving technology to developing countries to allow them to build renewable energy sources. This program would however be run through the Department of Energy, and at first glance the Senator from Illinois is not keen on just yet exporting all technologies. One of the technologies he actively endorses and would like to see with a bright future is carbon sequestration. Obama would like to also see the United States take a more active leadership role in United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, however just like his predecessor he would see to create yet another forum. This Global Energy Forum would only be started after the United States had invested heavily in renewables and would include the G8 plus the other five largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
On his site he has a plan amongst which there are highlights such as a economy wide cap and trade program. This program would aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Long term he wants to cut emissions by 80% by 2050 when compared to 1990. In the short and probably more important time scale he is looking for a reduction of emissions to reach 1990 levels by 2020. He wants to set targets from his first year in office, a tough sale perhaps considering the direction the US economy is headed. However his cap and trade program which would function like a market will certainly find a lot of buy in from northeastern states and others who have been looking at similar initiatives. The candidate further favors a 100% auction meaning that emissions rights will not be given away to big polluters. The proceeds from these auctions would then be used to fund research and transition costs as well as retrofitting of houses.
The main cornerstone of his program which would impact the renewable energy industry are his plans to create a so called “clean energy economy” , and thereby create green jobs. This buzzword has been bouncing around for sometime now and is seen as a stepping stone to create many manual labor jobs , which could function as a stepping stone to those currently finding themselves with skills that are in demand.
The Senator would also like to see a sharp increase in the fuel mileage standards and require companies to mix more biofuel content in their fuels. In addition to this he wants to boast the biofuel infrastructure in the United States. This should come to no surprise considering his backgrounds coming from a state with a large corn lobby. Obama however has conceeded the limitations of corn based ethanol and wants like many other people to switch to cellulosic ethanol. As part of this move the first 2 billion gallons would make its way into the system by 2013. As part of this he also wants to offer incentives to build locally owned biofuel refineries in rural communities. This he argues would add jobs and income and hold many benefits. The program would include offering technical advice as well as tax credits for communities suitable to such developments.
As part of his program he also wants to double the investment in energy research which according to his website is below 1970 levels when adjusted for inflation. The technology which United States research insitutions would develop would also be exported and made available to other countries for use. Including a sizeable investment in weatherizing houses and boasting energy efficiency. In addition there would be a plan to digitize the America electrical grid bringing this part of American Infrastructure up to a world class level.
As final measures 25% of national electricity would come from renewable sources. However once again here we must be careful as the Senator seems to also have clean coal and nuclear power selected as making up a big push towards this hurdle. He has however made conditions on these, as he sees it there is no future for traditional coal. Also by investing in clean coal technology which could be exported to China for use there , there could be large benefit in not writing off this abundant energy source. As for nuclear , he claims it makes up the largest part of the non carbon emitting technologies when it comes to share of carbon emissions. Like coal though there is no room for traditional developments and there must be a move towards new set of processes for this type of power.
Tomorrow: Hillary Clinton...
For additional information:
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/energy/
