Building Bridges to Energy Independence "The missing link," says T. Boone Pickens, in speaking of America's energy situation, "is leadership in Washington." (Hmm--sounds eerily familiar.)
The Texas oil magnate has proposed a plan to deal with our energy problems that actually seems to make sense. A central component of his plan is the use of natural gas, rather than gasoline, to power automobiles. In 1970, as Pickens notes, the United States was importing 24% of its oil. President Nixon predicted that the country would achieve energy independence by 1980. Instead, by 1990 America was importing 42% of its oil. In 2008, the figure is almost 70%.
America, with four percent of the world's population, uses 25% of its oil.
Natural gas is abundant. It is also cleaner, cheaper—and domestic. Pickens further points out that there are currently eight million vehicles in the world running on natural gas, only 142,000 of them in the U.S. Natural gas would free us of dependence on foreign oil (and thereby free us of reliance on some countries that are not friendly to us) and give us time to move toward electric vehicles.
Or, perhaps a bit further away, air-powered vehicles. There are such contraptions. Several companies are hoping to bring them to the market within the next year or two.
We could also work to harness wind and solar energy. These achievements are not beyond our reach. The World Solar Challenge, founded in 1987, is a solar-powered car race. So is the North American Solar Challenge and the planned South African Solar Challenge. The "wind corridor," stretching from west Texas to Canada, could generate 20% of the nation's electricity supply. Wind power is the cleanest form of energy, and has rejuvenated the economy of Sweetwater, Texas, which lies in the wind corridor. This area lies through the center of the U.S., affording easy reach to the east and west of the country.
Pickens speaks of some of these energy sources as bridges to more long-term energy solutions. Natural gas, for example, while plentiful, is not renewable. Still---bridges are good. In fact, we may soon see an increase in private investments in these technologies.Author and journalist Thomas L. Friedman, in discussing the government's recent bailouts, suggests that banks will now be more cautious in lending, and quotes the financial strategist David Smick on who benefits from bailouts and who doesn't: "The winners: the strong, the big, the established, the domestic, and the safe—the folks who, relatively speaking, don't need the money. The losers: the new, the small, the foreign and the risky—emerging markets, entrepreneurs and small businesses not politically connected....Yet emerging economies are the big market for American exports."
With banks becoming more cautious—perhaps too cautious—private investment has the opportunity to lead the way in funding alternative energy sources. Pickens has in fact called specifically for private investments to fund some of his own proposals, such as the construction of thousands of wind turbines in the wind belt and lines to transmit electric power in support of wind energy.
"Ultimately," says Friedman, "we can't bail our way out of this crisis. We can only grow our way out—with more innovation and entrepreneurship, which create new businesses and better jobs."
BreadStreet Author: James Cotter
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Article also published at Associated Content
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