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Senator Byrd

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Remarks by Senator Byrd

May 19, 2004

Securing Our Energy Security:  A New Strategy

A perfect storm has been brewing, and Americans have already felt the leading edge of the approaching squalls.  Today, we are more dependent on imported oil than ever before.  More than 54 percent of the oil that Americans consume comes from foreign countries, especially OPEC producing nations.  Instead of striving to disentangle ourselves from this foreign oil dependency, the Bush Administration seems intent on sinking our military and energy fortunes deeper and deeper into the sands of the Middle East.

Last week, gas prices in many regions of West Virginia were above $2 per gallon.  Within days, these prices could easily exceed the $2 per gallon average nationwide.  The price of natural gas is at a historic high, and consumers and manufacturers in West Virginia and across the country are struggling to pay their bills.  Though some advocate reducing this pressure by importing liquified natural gas in the future, we must also recognize that this will create a new and growing resource dependency.  It is hard to believe that the energy and foreign policy decisions made in places elsewhere in the world are having such a dramatic impact on the lives and pocketbooks of our citizens, but that is today's reality.  

Another aspect of that gathering storm is the poor state of our electricity grid, the lifeline of our economy.  However, decade-long efforts to deregulate electricity markets have, in some cases, led to market manipulation and fracturing rather than producing a more integrated, reliable system.  Given the blackout last summer, few observers would doubt that our electric transmission system needs to be made more robust.  Furthermore, economic and environmental regulations governing energy production and use are often in conflict with our disjointed energy policies.  Continued uncertainties make investment decisions difficult and clearly demonstrate that these ongoing debates must be resolved.  Due to the lack of political will, special interest entrenchment, and other constraints, policymakers have been unable to untangle this Gordian Knot.

These concerns are central to the long-term interests of our nation, and they represent very ominous clouds on the horizon.  Sadly, our energy problems are being addressed with band-aid solutions.  In recent years, we have witnessed attempts to put a moratorium on federal gas taxes, to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and to make secretive deals with Saudi Arabia to produce more oil.  We have unnecessarily endeavored to treat the symptoms and not the core problem for far too long.  Instead, our nation needs to begin defining alternative pathways and new approaches that go beyond the extremist debates and simplistic solutions that define our very demanding energy and environmental challenges.

Three years ago this week, the Bush administration released the National Energy Policy (NEP) report.  Unfortunately, Americans have yet to receive the benefits that this energy plan promised to provide.  Given the NEP's three-year anniversary, I am announcing that I, along with other Senators, have asked the General Accounting Office to undertake a broad and comprehensive review of the Federal government's energy funding, policies, and overall goals to determine whether the U.S. does, in fact, have strategic plan in place.

The U.S. is without a serious energy policy, and no energy bill currently before this Congress can adequately rectify that problem.  The U.S. faces the simultaneous challenges of an expanding energy appetite, a need to reduce its dependence on imported resources, and a decreasing tolerance for environmental impacts.  Sadly, policymakers have, time and again, failed to craft a comprehensive approach -- a failure which continues to jeopardize our nation's security, economic health, and environment.  Too much is at stake to continue to ignore these looming problems.

America's energy policies have been driven primarily by a reaction to supply shortages and crises.  The energy policy approaches of numerous administrations are littered with false starts, false promises, and abrupt shifts -- lurching first in one direction then in another.  When it comes to securing America's energy future, the Bush White House is stuck in short-sighted, high-risk initiatives which seem largely guided by big dollar campaign contributors.  Despite its rhetoric, this White House's lip service and corporate coddling have been the sum total of its energy policy.  It began with the Vice President's National Energy Policy task force and concluded with the exclusion of Democrats from the energy conference.  As a result, the Bush Administration appears to see energy policy as a way to reward its friends while sidestepping the serious, lingering challenges that face this country and, in fact, the world.  

In spite of our nation's herky-jerky responses to energy policy, there have been some successful energy policy initiatives.  Surely, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act, and the Clean Coal Technology program have proved invaluable.  However, for the most part, there has been little foresight, no coherent framework, and no clear objectives on which to base future decisions.  The nation needs a long-term energy plan that includes criteria and benchmarks by which to measure progress.  In short, it requires a more integrated, cohesive roadmap.

Now is the time for the cornerstones of our nation's energy strategy to be solidly established.  Opportunities exist for entrenched parties to come together on a more comprehensive and cohesive approach. This approach must integrate four fundamental principles: diversity of energy sources to protect our nation's security; fiscal soundness to ensure stakeholder support and increase economic growth; consumer protections to guard against fraud and manipulation; and safeguards to minimize energy's environmental footprint.

A serious energy efficiency program, bolstered by the promotion of renewable energy and other clean home-grown energy sources, provides a compass point for a U.S. energy strategy.  At its core, we must rely on our nation's domestic energy assets, especially coal.  Coal must become a primary fuel source for new energy demands into the 2lst Century.  However, to do so requires that we think differently about coal.  We must accelerate the deployment of commercial-scale technologies that move us away from simply burning coal toward the enhanced ability to transform coal into a variety of energy products.  We can begin to meet this challenge by deploying advanced power generation and carbon sequestration technologies as well as by producing hydrogen and synthetic fuels for use in other sectors of the economy.  Parallel efforts must also be initiated to resolve the outstanding environmental and regulatory issues attendant to coal production and reclamation.  This broad approach also requires sending strong and clear regulatory and market signals which can significantly reconcile numerous environmental and climate change concerns, stimulate technology deployment, and set the stage for a renewed era for coal.

Furthermore, our nation must recognize the incredible impact that U.S. technologies and ideas can have in helping to meet other nations' energy needs in a more sustainable way.  We must work to open and expand international markets for a range of U.S. clean energy technologies and simultaneously address global energy security, economic, trade, and environmental objectives.

The path that I am proposing here today goes far beyond the so-called comprehensive energy legislation currently before us.  Pursuing this course will take steadfast leadership, hard work, and American ingenuity to move forward in a responsible, balanced, and intelligent way.  It is time for industry, labor, academic, environmental, and community interests to work with policymakers to find common ground.  Commonsense market-based and regulatory approaches, emerging technology platforms, and new policy perspectives can bring these divergent groups together.  By doing so, we can champion a new energy and environmental legacy that will benefit all the world's citizens.

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