By John Addison (updated 8/10/11; original 8/5/11)

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake then tsunami triggered escaping radiation from nuclear reactors near millions of people in Japan.

On Sunday, August 7, a group of the world’s greatest musicians performed an inspiring benefit concert to support disaster relief in Japan. Crosby, Stills & Nash, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Jason Mraz, The Doobie Brothers, Tom Morello, John Hall, Kitaro, Jonathan Wilson,  and Sweet Honey in the Rock sang on behalf of  Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE). Music video links and breaking news are available at NukeFree.Org.

I was mesmerized by the music, the soaring harmonies of veteran cosmic rockers and new voices, and a dazzling performance powered with little grid energy. The Shoreline Amphitheatre concert stage was powered by an integrated system of SunPower solar PV in mobile SunPod modules, biodiesel gensets, mobile batteries, and WindTronics wind turbines. The energy-saving GRNLite LED lighting rig for the show has been donated by Bandit Lites, and Schubert Systems has donated the sound rig.

“The disaster in Fukushima is not only a disaster for Japan. It is a global disaster. We come together now across cultural boundaries, political and generational boundaries, to call for changes in the way we use energy, and in the ways we conduct the search for solutions to the problems facing humanity,” says Jackson Browne. “We join with the people of Japan, and people everywhere who believe in a non-nuclear future.”

It was shortly after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that triggered multiple meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan that the decision was made by MUSE to coordinate the benefit. We have all read the news about the radiation in Japanese drinking water, food, and children exposed in radiation contaminated schools (New York Times Article).  When these great artists meet press members including me before the concert, Bonnie Raitt said, “We all live downwind.”

These musicians are committed to making a difference. Graham Nash uses solar power. As a father of three he told me of his compassion for all of our children. Speaking of nuclear industry executives he asked, “How can they do this. They’ve got their own children.”

“This is another massive world energy disaster from which there will be long-term effects,” adds Jason Mraz. “I am thrilled to be a part of this amazing show that will not only help those in Japan, but that will also call attention to the urgent need to embrace safe, clean energy alternatives.” Jason lives only 20 miles downwind from the aging San Onofre reactors built on an earthquake fault. Jason uses solar power and even had a solar party to educate his neighbors including my 86-year old friend Vera who now uses solar.

For over 25 years, Jackson Browne has lived off-grid using solar and wind power. Jackson rides on sunlight, charging his Chevy Volt with his renewable energy.

Major Nations Phase Out Nuclear

Germany makes it the age of renewables and will be ending its use of nuclear power in 10 years. By 2022, the last German nuclear power plant will be closed down. After the disaster in Japan, Germany has already permanently closed 7 nuclear plants. Germany’s world leadership in energy efficiency, wind power, and solar power, make the end of nuclear by 2022 feasible.

Italy is also no nukes due to a referendum where 90 percent of Italian voters called for the end of nuclear power. Italy is also showing strong leadership in solar power.

Reuters reports: “Japan, the world’s third-biggest nuclear power user, has only 16 of its 54 reactors on line, supplying less than a third of the total commercial nuclear generating capacity of 48,960 megawatts. The share of nuclear power in Japan’s power supply tumbled to about 18 percent in June from about 30 percent before the disasters struck.” Upgrading buildings and homes in Japan to LED and other energy efficient lighting would eliminate the need for those 16 reactors.

Most problematic in Japan are nuclear plants that are over 30 years old. Such dangers should give us pause in the United States where over 100 plants were built pre-1977 with 40-year target lives. 59 of those plants have had their licenses extended to 60 years. The nuclear industry has campaigned to stretch these to 80-year licenses.  In almost all cases, like Japan, the spent rods are stored onsite in U.S. plants. Some U.S. reactors are located near major earthquake faults.

The new generation of reactors are designed to be safer. Unlike wind and solar, nuclear provides electricity 24/7. Contrary to a common perception, nuclear is not as clean as renewable energy. The nuclear industry admits that the lifecycle greenhouse emissions from a nuclear plant are roughly equal to a natural gas plant, due to building with cement, mining, and spent fuel management. Promising innovation is occurring in small nuclear reactors, waste processing and the perpetual dream of fusion. But the industry constantly fails to meet commitments of being safe and cost-effective without government subsidy. Perhaps the greatest obstacle to new nukes in the U.S. is that financing requires taxpayer guarantees, taxpayers to insure the plants, and taxpayers on the line for future disasters.

It is no wonder that many Europeans have insisted on the phase-out of nuclear power after Chernobyl radiation spread to Europe, contaminating food and water. The cancer deaths from radiation exposure haunt people, as do child birth defects.

From my childhood, I remember when the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the United States and Russia to the brink of nuclear war.  Students were drilled to duck under our desks in the event on an atomic bomb. Neighbors built bomb shelters. We lived in fear. The threat still exists today as we watch the tension between North and South Korea, between Pakistan and India, and the threat of Nuclear Terrorism. The mideast worries that Iran’s nuclear ambitions go beyond generating electricity. If they do, another defiicit-financed war in the mideast will be the least of our problems.

Coal is the Other Unsafe Fuel

It would be tragic, however, if the phase-out of nuclear power lead to an increase of coal power. More people die each year from coal-power related lung cancer, asthma, and heart attacks, than die from nuclear plant radiation. Coal power plants emit mercury, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and carbon dioxide.

Even worse is the methane escape from blowing-up mountain tops to feed our hunger for coal. Basic chemistry informs us that methane and CO2 accumulate in our atmosphere trapping heat. Climate models show that increased heat is threatening our food, our water, and our future. My 87-year old mother has been evacuated twice in recent years from wildfires that followed record draughts.

Although many in the fossil fuel industry now work behind the scenes to shutdown the EPA, or at least reduce their budget to make them ineffective, we actually need the EPA to increase its vigilance in protecting our health and future.

Fortunately, when new power plants are built, coal is rarely cost-effective in comparison to efficient natural gas power plants. In some parts of the world, coal cannot compete with renewable energy such as hydropower and wind power.

Safe Energy Meets All of Our Energy Needs

The good news is that we are moving to an energy future that is brighter and safer. Nations are moving from last century’s model of energy waste and unused capacity to this century’s model of energy efficiency and renewable energy.

In the United States, only about 52 percent of our generation capacity is used on average. We have build an ancient power system designed for all the air conditioners to run on the hottest afternoon in August. Now that smart grid technology including smart meters are being installed by the millions, utilities can deliver the right price signals and charge more when energy demand strains the system, and less energy is plentiful. Using software based intelligent energy management, corporations can run processes at the most cost effective time and we can wash our clothes at times when we can save money.

Energy efficiency (EE) is also lowering our need for coal and nuclear power. LEED buildings use of fraction of the energy of our worst structures. The new LED lights that shine over me as I write to you use 5 times less energy than the incandescent bulbs I formerly used.

The cleanest solutions to global warming, air pollution and energy security are wind, water, and solar power (WWS).  As Dr. Mark Jacobson walks me through the numbers of his, Dr. Mark Delucchi, and their teams’ multi-year study, the renewable energy solution stands out as the clear winner. Dr. Jacobson is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University and an advisor to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Wind power has been doubling in capacity about every three years. It’s now over 200 GW; in 3 years it will be over 400 GW. 36 U.S. states generate enough wind power to replace one or more coal or nuclear power plants.  U.S. wind grew 39 percent in recession year 2009. In a growing number of global locations from Hawaii to Denmark, wind is the least expensive way to generate power. Their WWS study includes both on-shore wind power, which is plentiful from Texas through the Dakotas, and offshore with enormous potential along our Pacific and Atlantic coasts and our Great Lakes.

Solar includes the photovoltaics that cover homes and the faster growing PV that covers commercial roofs. It also includes the grid-scale PV and concentrating solar power (CSP) that generates the equivalent power of a natural gas or coal plant. The water in WWS includes hydropower, our most widely used source of renewable energy, and geothermal power, which uses steam to drive turbines.  Water also includes emerging, wave and tidal power generation. Brilliant minds, breakthrough innovation, and billions of investment in companies that deliver more cost-effective renewables and energy efficiency.

WWS can meet all of our needs for electricity. WWS can also meet all of our need for heat and for transportation. VantagePoint Capital Partners provide venture capital and management guidance to innovative leaders in energy innovation and efficiency, such as BrightSource, Better Place, and Goldwind.  VantagePoint was the presenting sponsor of the MUSE Concert.

Safer Energy and Economic Growth

During the next ten years, we will see major nations make their people safer by shutting down their last nuclear power plant. Due to the innovation and progress in energy efficient lights and buildings and thanks to the high growth of renewable energy their nations will better meet all their power needs.

Within the next three decades, all the of our global energy demands can be achieved with zero coal and nuclear power as we replace massive waste with intelligent energy management, replace darkness with energy-efficient lighting, and replace mercury and nuclear poisoning of our children with the power of the sun and the wind.

Safe Energy – MUSE for No Nukes is a post from: Clean Fleet Report

Book excerpt from Save Gas, Save the Planet

My ninth trip to teach a workshop at Two World Trade Center never happened because of the great tragedy 9/11. For years Sun Microsystems, my former employer and now part of Oracle, had invited me to conduct a series of workshops about technology and strategy. Much of the Wall Street ran on Sun servers, Java applications, and Sun network technology. Reliability, performance, and the ability to recover from disaster were reasons that New York continued to run after the disaster.  Sun’s tagline was reality – “The Network is the Computer.”

On September 11, 2001, thanks to heroes like Avel Villanueva the hundreds of people working for Sun Microsystems in Two World Trade Center all quickly evacuated the building and survived. When Avel saw the damage and fire at One World Trade Center, he paged everyone at Sun to leave Two World Trade Center as quickly, “Please, with calmness, go to the nearest exit. This is not a drill. Get out.” He repeated this from the reception area several times. Only after several pages and inspecting the vast 25th and 26th floors did Avel personally leave. Three minutes later the second plane hit Two World Trade Center.

Although it must have been difficult to continue working after such a tragedy, the people at Sun understood that New York depended on their ability to keep working. Within 24 hours almost all Sun employees were doing their jobs at other Sun locations, homes, even nearby cafes. Sun effectively used its own networking technology with an iWork program that enables employees to work at home, at an office near their home, or be highly productive anywhere with a mobile device and wireless network connection.

Flexwork is one way that we are now more secure. The vital work of millions can continue even if a building cannot be accessed or part of a city is closed. Wireless and Web 2 enable collaboration, communication, and knowledge work to continue anytime and anywhere. People are most effective working some days at one location, other times at home, others at a customer or supplier location. We can take advantage of the new flexible workplace solutions to annually save millions of wasted hours and billions of dollars of fuel. Flexible Work Report

Energy Security Action

Both 9/11 and the massive oil spill destruction of our oceans and coastal cities remind us that we need to be less dependent on oil. Ninety-five percent of our transportation fuel is from oil that is refined into gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. We pay for that oil by transferring trillions of our dollars to countries hostile to the United States.

Americans are taking action to reduce our dependency on oil. They are driving less by taking advantage of employer programs such as flexwork, ride sharing, and public transportation. Last year, Americans removed 3.5 million cars from the road for the 10 reasons in this report.

Over 60,000 Americans drive electric cars like the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt that use little or no gasoline. Millions drive more fuel efficient cars.

Electric cars, electric transit, and electric high-speed rail are fueled by electricity produced in America. Electric cars will primarily be smart charged at night and take advantage of our high growth of wind, solar, and other renewable energy.  We have enough wind to power the nation including transportation. We have enough solar. Yes, it will take time, money, high-voltage lines to major markets, and added jobs. Green is producing green. While many areas of our economy are currently suffering, renewable energy and energy efficiency are growing and creating jobs and corporate profits.

Real security requires more than airport checks, less foreign oil, and cleaner transportation. Real security starts with the commitment to give our children a better world. Future generations deserve nourishing food, clean water, and protection from disease. Global warming has now put over one billion at risk of not getting enough water and food. Glaciers are disappearing. Water systems are stressed as oceans rise and water tables deplete. Hurricanes attack our coastal cities with increased intensity. Draughts, heat waves, and wild fires weaken our ability to grow food at affordable prices.

Yes, there are those in Congress who are chanting “drill, drill, drill,” but we cannot end our addiction to oil with more oil. Elected to represent their people, not special interests, these legislators threaten to stop funding renewable energy unless Big Oil can drill anywhere it pleases.

In Mr. Friedman’s Hot, Flat, and Crowded he recalls a Chinese proverb, “When the wind changes direction, there are those who build walls and those who build windmills.” America can renew its world leadership with innovative solutions to our energy crisis. We can lead in wind power, solar, geothermal, building efficiency, materials that are lighter and stronger, zero emission cars, and zero emission cities. From information technology to clean technology, from flexwork to sustainable communities, let’s build windmills not walls.

We can be inspired by heroes like Avel Villanueva who got everyone to safety. We can also celebrate the millions of ordinary heroes who are building a more secure future for our children by living a more sustainable life.

Copyright 2010 © John Addison. Permission to reproduce with preservation of this copyright notice and link to original article. John Addison is the author of Save Gas, Save the Planet.

9/11 – Americans Respond to Energy Security Challenge is a post from: Clean Fleet Report

Thin-film solar grew 102 percent annually from 2006 to 2010, as costs fell. By 2009, thin-film reached 23 percent of total solar market share. By 2013, it should reach 30 percent. Over 160 companies currently compete in the thin-film space, with First Solar being the billion-dollar giant who is the cost leader with large-scale electric utility projects.

Step price drops have been great for customers, but brutal for the 160 competing manufacturers. Investors now debate – Is thin-film more hype than hope, or will reaching grid-parity pricing cause breakthrough success for the leaders. GTM Research dives into the complex issues of cost curves, investor risk, and market demand, to forecast the future for the industry.

Amorphous Silicon (a-SI) is forecasted to dominate with 5.8 GW over CdTE and CIGS with 2.4 each by 2012. An intense competitive battle is forming between the United States, Asia, and Europe. U.S. will grow all three thin-film technologies. A-Si will be the predominant production from China and Taiwan, but they will heavily fund R&D in CIGS which has already improved to 12 percent efficiency. Module costs are forecasted to reach 80 cents per watt in 2012 for multiple technologies.

Long-term only a few operationally-efficient manufacturing giants will enjoy large market share and reasonably margins. Other players will need to be adept in focusing on value-added applications, specific market segments, and system integration.

As of 2010, only two thin film companies have produced in excess of 100 MW annually. The cost structure of most amorphous silicon, considering its low efficiency, is barely competitive with crystalline silicon, and CIGS producers have encountered technical issues in manufacturing that have forced most of them to delay commercial production, a situation which has persisted since 2007. To make matters more difficult, capital constraints led banks and developers to shy away from thin film in favor of more mature and abundant crystalline silicon modules for projects in 2009. Yet thin film will continue with high growth and market share gains. There will be winners, consolidation, and bankruptcies.

GTM’s 200-page report peels away the layers of hype and speculation that have traditionally shrouded thin-film PV to provide a comprehensive, granular, and objective assessment of thin-film. Packed with data points, color, and analysis, Thin Film 2010 assesses thin film’s impact on the global PV market by analyzing all relevant factors that influence demand for thin film, and how these factors interact when determining technology selection in PV markets. To download report summary or purchase the GTM Report. This Comprehensive Report Includes:

• Manufacturing processes
• Technology/operational characteristics (efficiency, substrates, temperature coefficient, area footprint, weight, spectral response, kWh/kW performance)
• Module costs, prices, gross margins, and balance-of-system costs
• Feasibility by market application
• Capacity and production estimates
• Market share and market sizing estimates
• Comprehensive summarization and analysis of 2009 events and developments
• Detailed profiles of the top 65 global thin film companies in the market

Thin-Film Solar Energy Growing 100 Percent Annually is a post from: Clean Fleet Report

Utility scale solar continues high growth

By John Addison (5/28/09).

The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA)  whose membership includes 110 utilities issued a new report – “2008 Top Ten Utility Solar Integration Rankings” – which identifies the utilities in the U.S. that have the most solar electricity integrated into their portfolio.

The report demonstrates that the utility segment is making a major investment to increase the amount of solar energy in power portfolios, with many utilities doubling the amount of solar power in their portfolio in just one year. The installed solar capacity of the top ten ranked utilities rose 25 percent in a tough economy, from 711 megawatts to 882 megawatts.

The Top 10 Utilities in cumulative megawatts installed represent six states stretching from California to New York:

#1 Southern California Edison(EIX) – CA (441.4MW)
#2 Pacific Gas & Electric (PCG)  – CA (229.5)
#3 NV Energy – NV (77.9)
#4 San Diego Gas & Electric (SRE) – CA (49.3)
#5 Public Service of Colorado (Xcel Energy – XEL) – CO (28.5)
#6 LA Department of Water & Power – CA (13.6)
#7 Public Service Electric & Gas Co. – NJ (13.2)
#8 Arizona Public Service Co. – AZ (10.6)
#9 Sacramento Municipal Utility District – CA (10.2)
#10 Long Island Power Authority – NY (7.7)

Although the sunny West Coast dominates this year’s list, other states are coming on strong including Florida, North Carolina, and Florida. Yes, the availability of sunlight is one driver in the expanded use of solar. Other drivers include the retail price of electricity, state government initiatives such as RPS, and cap-and-trade of emission credits.

There are two primary solar technologies, photovoltaic and concentrating solar power. Photovoltaic (PV) technologies utilize a photosensitive material to generate electricity direct from sunlight. PV can also be magnified using mirrors or lenses in low- or high-concentrations known as concentrating photovoltaic technology or CPV. Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies utilize mirrors or lenses to concentrate sunlight on a point or line and generate high-temperature heat, which is captured to generate electricity in a later process.

Julia Hamm, Executive Director of SEPA, sees strong growth in both PV and CSP. For example, Southern California Edison is planning a massive 1.3GW of CSP with BrightSource. Arizona Power is planning 125MW of PV. Medium- and utility-scale photovoltaic and concentrating solar thermal power projects are adding around 20 billion of dollars worth of investment.

Some European nations that aggressively use wind power, such as Spain and Denmark, have demonstrated that intermittency is quite manageable when renewable energy is less than 20% of the mix. CSP can take the mix much higher by storing energy in liquids like molten salt for delivery when demand peaks.

#5 on the list, Public Service of Colorado (Xcel Energy), is already experimenting with vehicle-to-grid (V2G Report),  which will allow the growing population of electric vehicles to provide power to the grid during peak hours. Utilities are experimenting with several forms of large scale grid-storage which will be promising if significant costs are achieved.

Some 30 years ago, solar was dismissed as impractical. Now that PV manufacturing cost is 100 times less than in early days, utilities are taking the lead in the growing demand for solar power.

Top Utilities Grow Solar Power Despite Recession is a post from: Clean Fleet Report

wind power Grew 51% in U.S. 2008

(3/26/09)

According to the latest figures published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its “Electric Power Monthly” report released on March 24, 2009, non-hydro renewable sources of electricity enjoyed double-digit growth during the past year while coal, natural gas, and petroleum experienced notable declines and nuclear power remained stagnant.
Specifically, EIA reports that net electricity generation in the United States dropped by 1.0 percent from during 2008 compared to 2007. Coal-fired generation was down by 1.1 percent, natural gas declined 2.2 percent, and petroleum liquids decreased by 37.1 percent.
Nuclear generation during 2008 was essentially stagnant – increasing by only 0.3 percent compared to the prior year.
On the other hand, EIA figures show that renewable energy, including conventional hydropower, increased by 5.9 percent during 2008 — reflecting a combined increase of 0.9 percent in conventional hydropower coupled with a 17.6 percent increase in non-hydro renewables (i.e., solar, wind, geothermal, biomass).
In particular, according to EIA, net generation from wind sources was 51.0 percent higher than it had been in 2007 while solar electric generation jumped by 36.1 percent. More modest increases were enjoyed by geothermal (2.5 percent) and wood + other biomass (0.6 percent).
In 2008, conventional hydroelectric power provided 6.1 percent of the U.S.’s total net electricity generation, while other renewables (biomass, geothermal, solar, and wind) generated a bit more than 3.0 percent of electric power.
However, non-hydro renewables’ share of the nation’s electricity supply has been increasingly steadily. As of December 2008, non-hydro renewables had expanded their contribution to 3.4 percent. By comparison, non-hydro renewables accounted for 2.5 percent of electricity generation in 2007.
“Thirty years after the March 28 accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, growth in that industry appears to have screeched to a halt,” said Ken Bossong, Executive Director of the SUN DAY Campaign. “On the other hand, renewable energy is continuing the pattern of meteoric growth that it has been enjoying in recent years and likely to continue in the foreseeable future.”
# # # # # # # #
The data cited above are taken from Table ES1.B of the Energy Information Administration’s “Electric Power Monthly – March 2009” (released March 24, 2009). It can be found at: http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/execsum.pdf
# # # # # # # #
The SUN DAY Campaign is a non-profit research and educational organization founded in 1993 to promote sustainable energy technologies as cost-effective alternatives to nuclear power and fossil fuels.

United States Wind and Solar Grow as Coal Use Decreases is a post from: Clean Fleet Report

On September 11, 2001, thanks to heroes like Avel Villanueva the hundreds of people working for Sun Microsystems in Two World Trade Center all quickly evacuated the building and survived. When Avel saw the damage and fire at One World Trade Center, he paged everyone at Sun to leave Two World Trade Center as quickly, “Please, with calmness, go to the nearest exit. This is not a drill. Get out.” He repeated this from the reception area several times. Only after several pages and inspecting the vast 25th and 26th floors did Avel personally leave. Three minutes later the second plane hit Two World Trade Center.

Although it must have been difficult to continue working after such a tragedy, the people at Sun understood that New York depended on their ability to keep working. Within 24 hours almost all Sun employees were doing their jobs at other Sun locations, homes, even nearby cafes. Sun effectively used its own networking technology with an iWork program that enables employees to work at home, at an office near their home, or be highly productive anywhere with a mobile device and wireless network connection.

Flexwork is one way that we are now more secure. The vital work of millions can continue even if a building cannot be accessed or part of a city is closed. Wireless and Web 2 enable collaboration, communication, and knowledge work to continue anytime and anywhere. People are most effective working some days at one location, other times at home, others at a customer or supplier location. We can take advantage of the new flexible workplace solutions to annually save millions of wasted hours and billions of dollars of fuel. Flexible Work Article

Every time that we go through an airport, we are aware that important steps have been created to make U.S. entry and travel more secure. Yes, despite the hassle and loss of some privacy, Homeland Security has been valuable in keeping terrorism at bay.

As our current president reminds us, “We are addicted to oil.” As we continue to spend billions for oil for countries hostile to our way of life, we continue in the words of Thomas Friedman to “finance both sides of the war on terror.” In his new book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded, the Pulitzer Prize winning author shows us how to be free of this addiction.

Americans are not waiting ten years to replace a fraction of our foreign oil with new oil from Alaska. Americans are reducing our oil use now. Confronted with high prices at the pump, U.S. citizens drove 12 billion fewer miles in one month. People are taking advantage of flexwork, public transit, car pooling, sharing rides and sharing vehicles. Two car households are buying fuel efficient cars and increasingly keeping their gas guzzlers parked. 40,000 Americans now drive electric vehicles that do not use a drop of oil. In ten years, we will be driving millions of electric vehicles. EV Reports

Twenty-three percent of our increased supply of electricity in 2007 was from renewable energy. We have enough wind to power the nation including transportation. We have enough solar. Scientific American Article Yes, it will take time, money, high-voltage lines to major markets, and added jobs. Green is producing green. While many areas of our economy are currently suffering, renewable energy and energy efficiency are growing rapidly creating jobs and corporate profits.Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2008

Real security requires more than airport checks, less foreign oil, and cleaner transportation. Real security starts with the commitment to give our children a better world. Future generations deserve nourishing food, clean water, and protection from disease. Global warming has now put over one billion at risk of not getting enough water and food. Glaciers are disappearing. Water systems are stressed as oceans rise and water tables deplete. Hurricanes attack our coastal cities with increased intensity. Draughts weaken our ability to grow food at affordable prices.

Yes, there are those in Congress who are chanting “drill, drill, drill,” but we cannot end our addiction to oil with more oil. Elected to represent their people, not special interests, these legislators threaten to stop funding renewable energy unless Big Oil can drill anywhere it pleases. Others want to undermine states rights, removing their ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions within their state.

Fortunately there are wise leaders in both parties committed to put a limit on our greenhouse gas emissions, encourage conservation, put us on a path to a sustainable future that is more secure for our children.

In Mr. Friedman’s new book he recalls a Chinese proverb, “When the wind changes direction, there are those who build walls and those who build windmills.” America can renew its world leadership with innovative solutions to an emerging climate crisis. We can lead in wind power, solar, geothermal, building efficiency, materials that are lighter and stronger, zero emission cars and zero emission cities. From information technology to clean technology, from flexwork to sustainable communities, let’s build windmills not walls.

We can be inspired by heroes like Avel Villanueva who got everyone to safety. We can also celebrate the millions of ordinary heroes who are building a more secure future for our children by living a more sustainable life today.

Copyright 2008 © John Addison. Excerpt from John Addison’s book – Save Gas, Save the Planet.

United States Energy Security is a post from: Clean Fleet Report