We urge the Senate Natural
Resources Committee to stop talking about the problem of global warming and
start talking about solutions to global warming.
America is the most technologically and economically advanced
nation in the world, blessed with vast natural and intellectual resources and a
skilled workforce. Georgia
alone has dozens of scientists and academics involved in research and
development around renewable technologies and climate science. Over half a
dozen of these scientists were involved in the production of the three reports
from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
But right now, Georgia is
failing to take advantage of our almost unlimited potential to generate
electricity from energy-efficiency and renewable energy sources such as
bio-power, wind and solar power. Consequently other states and
countries are outpacing us as they move beyond the debate around global warming
and find ways to tap in to the flourishing “green economy.”
The United States
has historically been a leader in the deployment of renewable and efficient
energy technologies. As recently as the mid 1990s, we were the world’s leader
in solar power capacity, and we had the second highest level in wind generation.
Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. By 2004, Japan
had three times the solar photovoltaic capacity of the United States, and Germany's capacity was more than
twice our own. The U.S. is
now third in installed wind-power capacity, placing behind Germany and Spain.
Currently, Germany employs over 40,000 workers in its wind-energy
industry and Denmark
employs another 20,000. Both of these countries have wind resources that are similar
to conditions off of the Georgia
coast.
Several recent national and
regional studies have found that impressive energy efficiency goals are within
reach. The National Action Plan for
Energy Efficiency, written by the EPA in 2006, found that adoption of cost effective
energy efficiency measures could yield more than a 20 % reduction in total
electricity demand nationwide by 2025.
To date, experience in
several states—including Texas, which has
climate demands very similar to Georgia’s—already
indicates that energy efficiency goals can be met or exceeded in a highly
cost-effective manner.
Renewable energy creates 40%
more jobs per dollar than traditional sources of energy. If Georgia does
not start to cultivate these green markets today, we stand to miss an
incredible opportunity.
Additionally, with
renewables, we will be shifting away from fuels that come from outside of Georgia;
renewables will help to diversify and secure the state’s energy supply.
The good news is that the
technologies that can give a boost to our economy and curtail global warming
pollution exist today; we urge the state legislature to aggressively pursue
greater achievements in energy efficiency and renewable power today.
