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Energy Resilience |
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"If the amount of
oil we import is a measure of the success of our energy policy
over the past
30 years, it has been a complete failure”
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We
import more than 10 million barrels of oil every day. We don’t
have the technology or infrastructure currently to eliminate all
imported oil. Instead, we must develop an effective plan to
substantially decrease our dependence. It will take leadership
from Washington as well as a belief by all of us that our future
security will be at risk if we fail to act now.
President Nixon set an ambitious goal 36 years ago to make this
country independent of foreign oil after the 1973 Arab oil embargo
highlighted our vulnerability to any cutoff of supply. At the time
President Nixon made his comment, we imported about 36% of our
oil. That figure is now 66%. If the amount of oil we import is a
measure of the success of our energy policy over the past 30
years, it has been a complete failure. |
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"Let this be our national goal: At the end of this decade, in
the year 1980,
the United States will not be dependent on any other country
for the
energy we need to provide our jobs, to heat our homes,
and to keep our transportation moving.” |
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President Richard Nixon – State of the Union 1974 |
Our
objective must be energy resiliency not energy independence. We
must develop an energy system in this country that is flexible and
can adjust to a disruption in supply if that time comes. Here are
some steps we can follow to get us to that point:
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Conservation: We
have control over the energy we consume which means we can
have a major positive impact on energy use. Our homes and
businesses use a substantial amount of the overall energy in
the country. We consume 40% of all energy and 70% of
electricity in our more than 120 million homes and 70
billion square feet of commercial buildings. Properly
insulating and sealing buildings, installing
state-of-the-art thermostats and other controls, and
stopping wasteful practices will reduce energy consumption.
We should set a goal of reducing energy consumption in these
sectors by at least 20% within five years.
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Flexibility:
Virtually 100% of our transportation system runs on oil. If
oil returns to its 2008 price, we will have an economic
crisis. If for any reason we
lose 5 million barrels per day of supply, we will have an
economic catastrophe. To reduce our exposure to imported oil
we must improve efficiency and alter the mix of fuels used
in transportation. Here's what we can do:
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Aggressively
adopt hybrid and other high mileage technologies: I
drive a car that gets more than 50 mpg. There are more
SUV’s and Crossover hybrids every year. New diesel
technologies will further improve fuel economy. We can
make a difference by choosing vehicles that give us the
highest miles per gallon in their class.
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Introduce
more natural gas into transportation: Natural gas is an
abundant US resource but is only used in a small
percentage of vehicles currently. While not immediately
practical for cars, natural gas makes sense in certain
applications. In particular, truck fleets that run
regular routes, municipal and post office vehicles,
taxis, school busses, and package delivery services
(UPS; FedEx) can all convert natural gas. If we could
convert this portion of our transportation system to
natural gas, we would substantially reduce oil imports.
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Electric
cars: With dramatic improvements in battery technology,
and expectation we will get a higher percentage of our
electricity from renewable sources, electrically powered
vehicles will make sense in certain applications such as
short commutes and urban driving.
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Carpooling: If
you go to any major city during rush hour, you will find a
high percentage of cars have only one passenger. With three
or more empty seats in most cars, there is a huge potential
gain in efficiency possible through more carpooling. Reduced
commuting costs and congestion are additional benefits to a
reduction in oil consumed. I do not support mandates, but I
do support an aggressive program to promote and encourage
increased carpooling. In addition, for security purposes,
the top 250 commuting municipalities should be working with
companies to design emergency carpooling contingency plans
that could be implemented in the event of a supply
disruption.
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Fee and
Dividend: No one likes higher oil prices. When prices spiked
in 2008, drivers as well as homeowners (who heat with oil
like we do in NH) suffered while we sent $600 billion out of
the country to support our oil addiction – much of it to
unfriendly governments. I’d rather keep the money here where
it can help our economy instead of sending it to Venezuela
or Iran. I support a fee on oil, as well as other fossil
fuels, that will raise the price but will also provide
incentives to become more energy efficient. Higher prices
will move us to the goal of reducing oil imports and
improving national security. This will raise a substantial
amount of money which shouldn’t automatically go to the
Federal Government as this would encourage more
unsustainable spending. I support a dividend to be returned
to taxpayers to offset higher prices. For those who choose
to conserve and use energy more efficiently, there would be
a minimal cost. For those who choose to continue using
energy as they do today, they will see increased costs. |
We
have the power to reduce our energy use and enhance national
security. We will need strong leadership from Washington, a
willingness to embrace change in our use of domestic and renewable
resources, as well as price incentives, to create a more resilient
energy system.
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It's time for
fiscally responsible, independent representation for NH
in Congress
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It's
time for Tim !
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