The United States’ huge appetite for energy, our reliance on unstable and unfriendly countries for most of our oil, our addiction to dirty fossil fuels, and an irresponsible national energy policy are a deadly combination for the global environment and the Rocky Mountain West.
Our continued reliance on coal, oil and gas fuels global warming. The Bush Administration’s rush to spur domestic natural gas production was harming western agriculture, water, communities, wildlife and public lands.
Fortunately, there is a good solution to our nation’s energy crisis—developing the West’s vast supply of clean and renewable energy. Renewable energy and energy efficiency are the fastest and most reliable way to increase energy supplies.
They also create more jobs than fossil fuel development, lower natural gas and electricity prices, and benefit the environment. Renewable resources are a common sense step away from our dependence on an unstable, unclean fossil fuel supply, and toward a new energy future.
WORC supports:
Biofuels: Clean Renewable Fuel from Farms –The expanded use of biofuels is a cheaper, more realistic and more immediate solution to our energy problems.
Renewable Electricity Standard – State and federal policies should set renewable electricity standards to require utilities to buy or generate a specific percentage of their energy from clean, renewable sources by a specific date.
Farm Bill Renewable Energy Program – The 2002 Farm Bill’s Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program should be fully funded to make grants and loan guarantees to farmers, ranchers and rural small businesses for renewable energy project.
Not-so-clean energy standard
President Barack Obama urged Congress in early 2011 to pass a “Clean Energy Standard” (CES). The standard would require that 80 percent of the nation’s electricity be generated from low-carbon energy sources including natural gas, nuclear energy, and carbon capture and storage to meet that 80 percent target by the year 2035.
WORC has criticized the standard because it ignores the harmful effects of fossil fuels and nuclear power on air, land, water and public health, and does little to spur a meaningful transition away from dependence on fossil fuels.
The proposal misses an opportunity for the United States to become a leader in the production of truly clean and renewable energy. A report released in November 2011 by WORC and the Civil Society Institute found that the United States could meet electrical needs by 2050 from energy efficiency and clean, renewable sources such as solar and wind, while phasing out all coal-fired power plants and some nuclear plants, as well as reducing the amount of natural gas consumed.
Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) said he intends to introduce CES legislation in 2012. This “clean energy” standard could actually set back America’s transition to clean energy.
Taking the Pulse of the Mountain States
A bi-partisan poll of inter-mountain West voters in 2011 shows that a strong majority believe that environmental standards and a strong economy can coexist. The findings, from the first-ever “Conservation in the West Survey,” reveal differences and many points of agreement among voters on issues such as conservation, regulations, renewable energy and other environmental issues.
Report Points Toward a Sustainable Future for the U.S. Power Sector
Toward a Sustainable Future for the U.S. Power Sector, by Synapse Energy Economics for the Civil Society Institute, outlines a realistic path for a cleaner and less expensive energy future. The report also finds that Westerners would likely see lower electricity costs by 2020 if the U.S. adopts a long-term strategy to replace coal-fire electricity with energy efficiency and renewable resources.
- Download the report, Toward a Sustainable Future for the U.S. Power Sector
- View short video on the report
- Read WORC's news release
- Read Op-Eds by Powder River Basin Resource Council member, Gillian Malone,Northern Plains Resource Council member, Ed Gulick, Dakota Resource Council member, Verle Reinicke, and Western Colorado Congress member, Gretchen Nicholoff
Beyond Business as Usual: Investigating a Future without Coal and Nuclear Power in the U.S.
A 2010 report by Synapse Energy Economics for the Civil Society Institute outlines a "transition scenario" that would step up energy efficiency and use of clean, renewable energy, allowing the country to retire all coal-fired power plants and over a quarter of existing nuclear reactors. A WORC fact sheet summarizes this report.
Coloradans and Montanans support renewable energy, energy efficiency, and fuel-efficient vehicles
If elected officials are going to continue investing in energy through subsidies, tax breaks and other incentives, the focus should shift from coal and nuclear power to promoting wind and solar energy, enhanced energy efficiency, and highly fuel-efficient vehicles, according to surveys of Colorado and Montana adults conducted for TheCLEAN.org and the Civil Society Institute. The surveys were released with Western Colorado Congress and Northern Plains Resource Council.
Resources
Frequently Asked Questions About Renewable Energy
Renewable Energy Policy Options
Renewable Energy in the West and Great Plains
Renewable Energy Atlas of the West
Clean Electricity Options for the Pacific Northwest
Repowering the Midwest - The Clean Energy Development Plan for the Heartland
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