The Washington Post reports that Congress has passed an energy bill that will now head to President Bush for his signature. It raises fuel-efficiency standards for vehicles, increases support for biofuels, and shifts away from that good ol' incandescent lightbulb. All in the hopes of cutting greenhouse gases and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.
"It is a national security issue, it is an economic issue, it is an environmental issue and therefore a health issue. It is an energy issue, and it is a moral issue." - Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House.
The bill's centerpiece is the boost in the minimum fuel-efficiency standard for passenger vehicles, the first to be passed by Congress since 1975. It requires new auto fleets to average 35 miles a gallon by 2020, a 40 percent increase from today's 25-mile average. By 2020, the measure could reduce U.S. oil use by 1.1 million barrels a day, more than half the oil exported by Kuwait or Venezuela and equivalent of taking 28 million of today's vehicles off the road.
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The commercial building industry could also be transformed by new incentives for energy-efficient windows, equipment and design. The federal government is supposed to make all of its buildings carbon-neutral through energy efficiency and clean energy use by 2030.
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"It is a national security issue, it is an economic issue, it is an environmental issue and therefore a health issue. It is an energy issue, and it is a moral issue." - Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House.
The bill's centerpiece is the boost in the minimum fuel-efficiency standard for passenger vehicles, the first to be passed by Congress since 1975. It requires new auto fleets to average 35 miles a gallon by 2020, a 40 percent increase from today's 25-mile average. By 2020, the measure could reduce U.S. oil use by 1.1 million barrels a day, more than half the oil exported by Kuwait or Venezuela and equivalent of taking 28 million of today's vehicles off the road.
...
The commercial building industry could also be transformed by new incentives for energy-efficient windows, equipment and design. The federal government is supposed to make all of its buildings carbon-neutral through energy efficiency and clean energy use by 2030.
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Labels: Congress, energy, environment
1 Comments:
Congress certainly has something to hang their hats on with the new CAFE standards. It may not be quite as much improvement as we had hoped for, but it's certainly a significant step in the right direction.
One thing to point out - there are a lot of people out there who say that we have to choose between a good economy and a green economy. The reality couldn't be further from the truth.
Does government need to subsidize new energy technologies to get them off the ground? Absolutely.
But when you look at how much we're already subsidizing Big Oil, it seems like a pretty good deal.
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