Issues

Position on Energy

I believe America has the resources, technology, and the need, to become 100% energy self-sufficient. Our sources and supplies of energy are too vital to our economy and national security to be subjugated to a second tier public policy issue. The energy issue overlaps with several other issues; national security, economic growth, and quality of life issues such as standard of living and the environment. The energy issue holds great promise for the Republican Party, but only if we predicate our party’s position on the following:

1 – Self Sufficiency

We import two-thirds of the oil we use. We are dependent on oil from the Middle East for one-third of our petroleum requirements. This situation, or more accurately, this predicament, is completely unacceptable to me. We are not a country that lacks resources. We have enough energy sources in our own country to sustain ourselves. The amount of money we send to other countries, that we could be keeping in America’s economy, is staggering. We often think of our trade-imbalance strictly along the lines of merchandise, or a products imbalance that we have with China, or other Asian countries. Surveying the broader picture, we have to realistically conclude that the money we send overseas for energy requirements contributes substantially to our monthly trade deficits.

The continental shelf off of America’s coastlines contains 60 trillion cubic feet of clean burning natural gas, and it is possible that there is even more than previously thought. In addition, there is an estimated 16 billion barrels of oil off of our shores. America also has at least 200 years of Shale oil supply. I believe that we should develop these resources. By doing so, we will address several issues. First: Energy Independence. We have allowed ourselves to become too dependent on imported oil. The two oil shocks in the 1970’s occurred when we imported one-third of our energy requirements. Today, America imports two-thirds of the energy it needs; one-third of that from the Middle East. This is a recipe for disaster. We are the world’s only Super Power, it is inconceivable to me that we continue to allow ourselves to be this vulnerable to energy flow interruptions.

“According to the American Petroleum Institute, The good news is that in fact, we do have an abundance of competitive domestic oil and gas resources in the U.S. According to the latest published estimates, there are more than 131 billion barrels of oil and more than 1000 TCF (Trillion Cubic Feet) of natural gas remaining to be discovered in the United States. Most of these oil and gas resources – 78 percent of the remaining to be discovered oil and 62 percent of the gas – are expected to be found beneath federal lands and coastal waters. The amount here is enough oil to power 55 million cars for 30 years and heat 24 million homes for 30 years. And there is enough natural gas to heat 60 million homes that use natural gas for 120 years.” See API’s website; Policy Issues, Exploration.

Second: Not only are we allowing ourselves to remain dangerously dependent on foreign sources of energy, but we are missing out on the creation of tens-of-thousands of good paying blue-collar union jobs. We are also keeping trillions of dollars of economic productivity and wealth creation from being realized. This is the second biggest crime of the energy issue; the first is that we send billions of dollars to parts of the world that harbor, train, and promote terrorism. Developing our domestic sources of energy would provide enormous amounts of economic opportunity for tens of thousands of American workers. Simply put, developing our domestic sources of energy would provide social mobility for our working poor, and much needed economic security for our middle-class.

2 – Promotion of New Technologies

I started American Energy & Utility Consultants, Inc. in the fall of 2002. Since that time, I have been exposed to the most dynamic industry in the country today. The technology that is available makes me an Energy Optimist. We do not need to subscribe to the Mikhail Gorbachev and Al Gore view of the world that would require a socialization of the global economy. The level of technology available to us is nothing less than astounding. There are ways to produce clean-low-sulfur diesel fuel from carbon rich waste products such as scrap tires, oil refinery waste, and coal mining waste. Carbon Sequestration allows us to capture CO2 before it is emitted into the atmosphere. It can be stored underground, or used in what is termed Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). EOR allows for oil to be extracted from older, declining-production wells. The CO2, when injected into the oil field, actually forces separation of oil embedded in rock and stone, thereby allowing for recovery. The promise of biofuels seems to grow daily. I strongly support government and private sector business developing a more energy secure tomorrow by continuing bringing to market these exciting new technologies.

I also support the same for Renewable Energy sources, such as solar and wind power. While an important part of America’s energy portfolio, we need to be honest when it comes to these two sources of energy production for America; We will not be able to solar or wind power our way out of our energy problem. It is fine to employ theses technologies, however, the American people need to know that these two sources of energy production are minimal in their current capacity, and will not be able to replace coal, oil, and natural gas as our economy’s fuel sources. The cost per unit of a solar generated kw/h has been decreasing, however, it is still not economically feasible on a large scale. I support advancing solar technologies, but again, I believe solar applications will remain limited for quite some time.

3- Environmental Stewardship

The Energy Issue cannot be dealt with in isolation. It must not only include the technological and economic concerns for our Country, but how our energy policy is balanced and harmonized with the environment. Growing up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, and vacationing on Jersey Beaches since I was three years old, I more than appreciate the 3rd District’s special environmental relevance.

I firmly believe that America’s energy policy should be guided by Fact, Balance, and Common Sense. Unfortunately our energy policy today is schizophrenic. America has not built a new refinery in 30 years, we allow extremist environmental groups to dictate the debate over energy and the environment, and we have allowed the permitting and regulatory process to choke, if not outright stop, exploration of new energy sources and the construction of much needed energy infrastructure. This is not 21st Century Energy Policy, rather, it is a disgrace and a slap in the face to the American people who expect, and deserve, their government to promote common sense solutions for their security and quality of life.

As I mentioned technological advances above, I must reiterate how much promise technology holds for us. More than enough resources are at our disposal. We need a Federal Energy Policy that promotes, not disrupts, energy exploration, and energy infrastructure development domestically. Specifically, we should:

• Develop domestic natural gas and oil supplies with proven, safe technology; for example, Directional Drilling for oil, etc.

• Expedited regulatory process for licensing Nuclear Power plants

• Finish Carbon Sequestration testing to implement Enhanced Oil Recovery operations on older, or capped oil wells

• Promote Solar energy

• Extract the clean burning coal located in America’s southwest

• Promote business development efforts for coal-to-liquid plants, specifically, low-sulfur clean diesel

We must also be cautious of environmental traps. For example, we should not automatically embrace an idea simply because the author of that idea uses a title that sounds environmentally friendly. For example, a Carbon Dioxide Cap-and-Trade program (CO2 Cap-and-Trade). As of now, 10 states in the Northeast are launching a Carbon Emissions Credit Trading program – The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. I was fortunate to have been involved with this program for the Division of Public Advocate for Delaware within the past year. This program is a precursor to a national carbon emissions credit trading program envisioned to be implemented in the next 5-10 years. I am willing to give a cap-and-trade program a chance to work; however, I am skeptical as to whether it can succeed. Carbon credits could become sought after commodities. They could be purchased by Investment Bankers, Hedge Fund Managers, or rich crazy liberals like George Soros. The result of this would be energy inflation like we have never seen before. All that would be accomplished here is increasing the cost of energy for all American consumers. Such a program would damage our economy, making us less competitive, making it more difficult for businesses to operate in America, and bringing down economic hardship on America’s poorer citizens. If the results from Kyoto are any indication, a cap-and-trade program will fail; Kyoto has failed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as promised.

America needs an Energy debate that is predicated on Fact, Balance in policy approach, and Commonsense solutions.