American Companies Tell The Senate: ‘We Can Lead’ On Clean Energy
American Companies Tell The Senate: ‘We Can Lead’ On Clean Energy
Hundreds of business executives are descending on Washington this week in support of a clean energy economy. Calling for investment in American jobs instead of global warming pollution, the CEOs participating in the Business Advocacy Day for Jobs & Competitiveness — an effort organized by the new We Can Lead coalition — will tell the Senate to take action with strong climate legislation like the Clean Energy Jobs Act introduced last week by Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA). Several of these companies have written a public letter to Congress and the administration calling for “comprehensive legislation to cut carbon pollution”:
We need you to swiftly enact comprehensive legislation to cut carbon pollution and create an economy-wide cap and trade program. We support this legislation because certainty and rules of the road enable us to plan, build, innovate and expand our businesses. Putting a price on carbon will drive investment into cost-saving, energy-saving technologies, and will create the next wave of jobs in the new energy economy.
Carol Browner, the director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy and EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are confirmed speakers before the We Can Lead companies, who will be lobbying Congress on Wednesday, October 7 on behalf of strong climate legislation. Many of the participants in the lobby day have endorsed the House legislation, the American Clean Energy and Security Act, and others have called for even stronger action. In addition, the CEOs are “scheduled to eat dinner with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Tuesday, and to hold a White House meeting with Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Wednesday morning.”
Politico reports that “28 companies and labor and green groups — including United Technologies, Johnson & Johnson, GE, Weyerhauser, the Nature Conservancy and the Environmental Defense Action Fund — are launching” a million-dollar ad campaign “in support of comprehensive clean energy and climate change legislation.”
We Can Lead is a collaboration between the Clean Economy Network, Ceres, and other business groups including:
– Arkansas Business Leaders for Clean Energy Economy
– Apollo Alliance
– Business Council for Sustainable Energy
– Business Forward
– Environmental Entrepeneurs
– EDF – Less Carbon More Jobs
– Indiana Businesses for Clean Energy Economy
– National Venture Capital Association
– Ohio Business Council for a Clean Economy
– Pennsylvania Business Leaders for a Clean Economy
– Renewable Energy Business Network
– TechNet
– US Climate Action Network
3 Responses to “American Companies Tell The Senate: ‘We Can Lead’ On Clean Energy”
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Things are looking good for Business Forward, the Blue corporate version of K Street.
October 5th, 2009 at 6:11 pmWow, CAP even included a link to Business Forward’s website. For other sources:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0509/22635.html
http://stateofthedivision.blogspot.com/2009/03/white-house-supports-brunswick-groups.html
October 5th, 2009 at 6:17 pm“A Global Green New Deal”
1. The Need For Change In Energy Platform :
A. About two thirds of deficit in the U.S. accrue from oil import.
B. Over $1 trillion and 4,346 dead as the Iraq war is winding down. By converting this excessive military budget into a constructive foundation of 21st energy and health care, world can live in harmony for good.
C. Tremendous trade deficit with China. The most expensive premiums of health care driving buyers into Wal-Mart .
D. Just to think of the sky in Beijing, human-made climate change might need no further evidence. Polluting toxic chemicals is comparable to the smoking habit that is detrimental to human health. And the numerous intractable diseases are almost certainly due to the toxic chemicals.
E. Provided the average temperature is getting higher, accordingly all forms of germs, viruses, and influenza etc are more likely to multiply.
Some skeptics say the warning against hazards of climate change is overstated, but judging from more frequent and widespread outbreaks of e. coli, salmonella, and bird, swine flu cases endangering human lives and economic recovery seriously, some prompt measures need to be taken, I guess.
2. The Cost Of Inaction :
As with “Inaction” cost, $9trillion over the next decade in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, supposedly the same is of inaction on the 21st energy bill to determine war & peace, catastrophe & prosperity.
In this economy, fuel price is hovering around $65 to $75 a barrel, which underscores the actual value might be much the same as $145 per barrel of the peak price. Last year, the petrol price jumped from about $60 to $145 per barrel in quite a short period.
I think energy market also needs competition between sustainable and conventional one to bend the cost curve, otherwise, the global economy stays flat for some time and is plummeting into another great depression as the international stimulus package can’t last long.
3. The Root Of Recession :
My sense is that this great recession is ascribed to excessively higher price of petrol in recent years. This price spelled about higher consumer prices and the continued hike in mortgage rates as a way to slow inflation, which wound up with crash in financial and construction markets. In an attempt to circumvent the censure of two petrol wars, the mainstream economists put focus on the both markets, and it postponed the prompt action on the long and long overdue contemporary energy needs.
Looking to worthless, painful and wasteful oil wars, to waste time bickering over meaningless things and drag feet on a defining energy bill are sure to shake the embryonic effect of stimulus package that is an interim measure for build-out of a new foundation.
As the overall oil reserve in Middle East, let alone the rest of oil-producing areas, is on the decline more than known, the region blessed with affluent sun rays also needs to lay a new groundwork, particularly in this context UAE is beginning to concentrate on future energy and Iranian EV is rolling out recently, the countries in the region will never stand still on the occupation, that means no matter what the result is, the repetitious mistake at the cost of invaluable lives and gigantic spending will end up with an irreversible tragedy later on.
4. Hope For Better Change & Job Boost :
As a major driver, IT industry stalled and stranded in a game industry for the lack of 21st energy policy over the stretch of two wars needs to evolve into the all but indefinite energy, medical, and academic industry where the investors are eagerly waiting for policy-makers to act now, which I guess is why the far-reaching and long overdue health care and 21st energy bill have come into focus.
Thankfully and interestingly enough, 100s of Companies (with $13 Trillion) Are Demanding Strong Climate Deal in Copenhagen just like environmental activists, a coalition of more than 500 Global Businesses is also demanding ambitious new climate deal, and the report by Blair and the Climate Group, a London-based nonprofit organization, found a climate-change accord among all countries would spur economic growth and create as many as 10 million jobs by 2020.
Beyond the report, according to a new report published by the Global Climate Network of think tanks, “A Global Green New Deal” could create tens of millions of new jobs by agreeing to invest in low carbon technologies.
This research shows that while jobs will be lost in conventional, carbon-intensive sectors, more jobs will be created than lost provided that policies to promote sustainable industry are ambitious enough and it is one of the most effective means of handling rising unemployment.
It concludes that measures to creating markets for low carbon technologies will serve the dual purpose of creating extra jobs in renewable energy, information technology and service sectors, as well as helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Those who say this is the wrong time to act because of the economic recession are wrong. Businesses and investors need certainty, and this is a road map to transform America into the world’s leader in clean energy manufacturing, creating new industry and jobs.
5. Funding For Hopeful Change :
A. Converting the excessive and destructive military budget into constructive financing for the 21st energy.
B. Phasing out subsidies for carbon-intensive industries, and taxing carbon emissions.
C. For the most part, the poor regions ranging from Africa to South Asia severely affected by climate change are abundant in sun rays, and the compensation by way of placement of large solar plants as well as the other measures could generate enormous effects.
D. The Congressional Budget Office released an analysis of the effects of House bill, concluding that in 2020 the bill would cost the average family only about $175 a year. This is 48 cents per day –- a little more than the cost of a postage stamp.
The budget office also predicts that real G.D.P. will be about two-and-a-half times larger in 2050 than it is today, so that G.D.P. per person will rise by about 80 percent. The cost of climate protection would barely make a dent in that growth.
6. Promising And Excess Tech In The Work :
In brief, only technology and innovation can meet the challenge, and the world of science has potential enough to get past this turbulence and for all over the globe to go along in harmony. Recently, GM and Reva that achieved a fantastic innovation of “wireless electricity”/ “instant remote recharge” have joined hands to develop Electric Vehicles.
In the near term, improving energy efficiency needs some up-front investments, though, in the long term, it promises much better future, and the current tech is sure to do better enough.
Thank You !
October 8th, 2009 at 2:27 pm