A New Energy Future
By Jon Tester
It’s springtime in Montana. That’s when my wife and I get to work the fields
on our family farm in Big Sandy.
What I’m struck by every spring is the sense of renewal, that our air, land,
water, animals and plants will sustain us for another year.
That’s why we need to think about renewable energy. America needs a new
energy future that ends our addiction to foreign oil and strengthens our
reliance on homegrown renewable energy we can create in Montana and America.
Skyrocketing energy costs, global warming, a war in the Middle East, and the
decline of rural America show that our energy policy - to the extent that we
have one - is not working.
America must develop a plan for a new energy future that:
Strengthens our national security.
Boosts our economy.
And enhances our air, land, and water.
The path to a new energy future is not particularly complicated. We must
reduce our consumption of fossil fuels and develop domestic sources of
energy.
That’s why as president of the Montana Senate I worked in the 2005
Legislature to pass a renewable energy bill that says Montana utilities must
get 15 percent of their energy from renewable resources by the year 2015. I
support a similar national standard that would require by the year 2020 at
least 15 percent of our nation’s energy be derived from renewable resources
like wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal energy.
That will strengthen our national security and help create jobs here at
home, especially in rural Montana.
Here are some other actions we must take:
We must end the experiment with energy deregulation. It simply
didn’t work. Deregulation pushed up energy rates, forced job layoffs, and
hurt business and consumers. Montanans understand we gave away our low-cost
power, and now we must develop a long-term energy strategy that ensures
affordable, reliable power that helps business, workers and consumers.
We should aggressively support the development of renewable energy.
Unlike fossil fuels, the price of wind is free and does not fluctuate
because of a war in the Middle East or hurricane on the Gulf Coast.
Renewable energy does not contribute to global warming or release toxic
pollutants like mercury. And, renewable energy is homegrown, made in
America, and will reinvigorate rural communities, providing new jobs.
I support appropriate incentives for the renewable energy industry. We give
incentives to the oil and gas industry. It’s time to level the playing
field. The federal wind Production Tax Credit should be extended for 15
years instead of its usual two years to give the wind power industry some
certainty. The Production Tax Credit gives a per-megawatt tax credit to
produced wind power, and has been largely responsible for the rapid
development of wind energy throughout the country in the last decade.
We must invest in and encourage biodiesel and ethanol development.
Biofuels, produced here at home, have the potential to significantly reduce
our dependence on foreign oil while improving our rural farm and ranch
economy. Crops for biofuels are not only a source of revenue, but also
could be converted to fuel near where they are grown, to be used by
producers in their own operations as a substitute for costly petroleum
diesel. So, instead of large multinational corporations benefiting from
supplying America with energy, a biofuels industry would be decentralized,
involving many growers and refiners, which could create thousands of new
jobs in Montana’s and America’s heartland.
We cannot disregard the role coal will play in this country, but we
must ensure that our use of coal is responsible. I applaud Governor
Schweitzer, who has started a dialogue with Montanans on the advisability of
turning coal into a liquid fuel. I agree with him that any coal development
must occur in an environmentally sound manner. This means addressing global
warming by capturing and storing carbon; means the removal of toxins like
mercury; and means mining coal and reclaiming the land afterward in a way
that protects our land and water.
We must take other steps, like promoting conservation, increasing fuel
efficiency standards, and providing funding for energy research programs to
ensure America’s best minds are on the task.
The solutions to our problems are in front of us. What has been missing is
the political will to make these choices.
In the end, this is the American people’s decision. Knowing you, the
citizens of Montana, makes me confident that we will achieve a new energy
future, and, in so doing enable our grandchildren to make their home on
God’s good earth.
Posted on Saturday, April 22nd, 2006 at 4:13 pm.
