US Energy Supplies Vulnerable:
Scientists Counter President
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Read: Energy Security: Solutions to Protect America's Power Supply and Reduce Oil Dependence.
Source: Union of Concerned Scientists
PRESS RELEASE
February 1, 2002
US Energy Supplies Vulnerable: Report
Says Exposed Infrastructure, Oil
Dependence to Blame
Scientists Counter President, Offer Responsible
Energy Security Plan
The nation's exposed energy infrastructure and growing
oil dependence present significant security risks to our
citizens and economy, warns a new report from the
Union of Concerned Scientists. The scientists' group -
responding to President Bush's renewed call for oil
drilling and subsidies to the fossil fuel industry - says
lawmakers can reduce the vulnerability of our energy
supply by passing new standards that enhance nuclear
safety and deliver oil-saving cars to the road,
high-efficiency technologies to our buildings and
industry, and renewable energy to our electrical outlets.
"The Bush administration and some in Congress are
using September 11 to push preconceived energy
polices that would exacerbate our energy insecurity,"
said Dr. Kurt Gottfried, a professor of physics at Cornell
University and Chairman of the Union of Concerned
Scientists. "Only responsible efficiency measures and
clean supplies will deliver a safer, cheaper, and cleaner
energy future."
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According to Energy
Security: Solutions to
Protect America's
Power Supply and
Reduce Oil
Dependence, the
nation's energy
infrastructure is highly exposed and makes an easy
target for a well-placed attack. A disruption at a key
power plant, refinery, transmission hub, or pipeline can
break the flow of power or fuel to millions of customers
and create costly energy price spikes. A major accident
at a nuclear power plant could kill tens of thousands and
contaminate an area the size of Pennsylvania.
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"The nation's power supply is inherently vulnerable to
devastating attacks," said Deborah Donovan, Senior
Analyst in UCS's Clean Energy Program. "Renewable
energy sources do not carry the catastrophic
implications of attacks on nuclear plants, large
centralized fossil fuel plants, and pipelines."
Energy sources like wind, solar, biomass, geothermal,
and landfill gas are geographically dispersed, burn no
volatile fuels, produce no radioactive fallout in the event of
an attack, and require less of the infrastructure that
delivers fuel and transmits electricity that makes our
current system so vulnerable. Through efficiency and
clean energy, we could, between now and 2020, avoid
building 975 new power plants, retire 180 coal plants,
and close 14 nuclear plants. Hundreds of thousands of
miles of new gas pipelines would not be necessary.
Independent studies show that renewable energy delivers
more jobs per dollar than investments in fossil fuel
plants. The Department of Energy estimates that
harnessing just 5 percent of our energy from wind by
2020 would create 80,000 new jobs.
The new report says US security is further threatened by
our dependence on oil. The US sends more than
$200,000 overseas each minute to buy oil. Even if we
imported far less and drilled more, the US economy
would still be susceptible to Persian Gulf instability and
OPEC market power because the price we pay for oil -
whether domestic or foreign - is tied to the world market.
The estimated costs of oil dependence to the US
economy are $7 trillion over the last three decades.
"Fuel-efficient vehicles, buildings, and industry can save
2.5 million barrels of oil per day by 2012, about as much
as we imported from the Persian Gulf in 2000," said
Jason Mark, Director of the Clean Vehicles Program at
UCS. "By 2020, oil savings would total 5.9 million barrels
per day, more than we import from all OPEC countries
today."
Not only do efficient technologies and clean power
supplies create a safer energy future, they save
consumers money. In less than twenty years, the annual
consumer savings from efficiency and renewable energy
would reach $150 billion per year, $500 annually for a
typical family.
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To deliver a safer, cheaper, and cleaner future, UCS calls
on Congress and the administration to: raise fuel
economy standards for cars and light trucks to 40 miles
per gallon by 2012; create incentives for next-generation
vehicles, like high-efficiency hybrids and fuel cells;
strengthen energy efficiency standards for appliances,
buildings, and industry, while increasing funding for
efficiency programs; adopt a renewable portfolio standard
requiring 20 percent of our electricity to come from
renewable energy sources by 2020, along with
appropriate incentives; and update and enforce safety
standards at our nuclear facilities.
"The President would increase our oil use and build a
host of large power plants, making our energy supply
even more vulnerable," said Alden Meyer, UCS Director
of Government Relations. "As the Senate takes up
energy legislation later this month, it's vital they take
steps to shore up our security by improving fuel
economy standards and increasing renewable energy
use."
For info on this release, call:
PAUL FAIN
202 223-6133
RICH HAYES
202 223-6133
To set up interviews, or for UCS info, contact:
PAUL FAIN
Press Secretary
202 223-6133
mailto:[email protected]
RICH HAYES
Media Director
202 223-6133
mailto:[email protected]
MICHAEL PANCOOK
Transportation Media & Outreach Coordinator
510 843-1872
[email protected]
Read: Energy Security: Solutions to Protect America's Power Supply and Reduce Oil Dependence.
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