Even as nearly 4,500 of us have joined together to ask our representatives in the House to take action now for renewable energy, the Senate has missed a prime opportunity to take the lead in moving America towards a new energy future.

Last week, the Senate Energy Committee passed an energy bill that fails to require that utilities generate more of our electricity from clean, renewable sources like wind and solar. Instead, the bill requires the use of more biofuels (energy derived from plants and other organic materials) in our cars, but fails to set the clear environmental standards needed to ensure that these biofuels will be truly clean and renewable.

Now, your Senators have a choice: they can take a pass on the enormous potential for clean, homegrown renewable energy or they can begin to tap into these renewable energy resources to cut global warming pollution, create jobs, and make America more energy independent. I know which choice I'd like them to make, and I bet you do too.

Tell your Senators to insist upon a new energy future. Click on the link below or copy and paste it into your web browser to take action. Then, ask your friends and family to help out by forwarding this message on to them.

Background

America's energy situation today is less secure than it has been in recent memory. We are too dependent on oil, much of it from foreign sources which threatens our national security. We have ample supplies of coal. But mining coal causes severe environmental damage and burning it releases large amounts air pollution; which contributes to global warming, acid rain, mercury contamination and unhealthy air. Nuclear power has been tried and found wanting for economic, environmental and public safety reasons. To make matters worse, virtually every year, Americans consume more and more energy.

Right now, America is failing to take advantage of our almost unlimited potential to generate electricity from renewable sources of energy like wind and solar power.

* The wind blowing through the Great Plains could generate enough electricity to power the entire country. Wind power installations in the United States have doubled over the last four years, and wind power is among the cheapest sources of new power generation in some parts of the country.

* Solar energy could conceivably generate more than enough electricity to power the entire United States. The cost of solar panels has declined dramatically in recent years and solar power installations worldwide nearly doubled between 2002 and 2004. Continued advances in solar technology could bring solar power within reach of more Americans within the next several years.

* Plant-based sources of energy, called "biomass," already provide a substantial amount of energy in America and can provide even more. A federal advisory group has set a target of having biomass account for 5 percent of industrial and electric generator energy use by 2020.

* Immense amounts of energy are contained within the earth. Experts estimate that as much as 100,000 megawatts of geothermal power -- equal to about 10 percent of today's electricity generation capacity -- could be economically viable in the United States.

Thankfully, America is the most technologically and economically advanced nation in the world, blessed with vast natural and intellectual resources. Our nation has a track record of responding to major challenges and achieving once-unthinkable goals. If any nation in the world is capable of creating an energy system that can fuel our economy while preserving our environment and our long-term security, it is us.

For America to retain our economic vigor, national security and environmental health, we must build toward a New Energy Future -- one based on homegrown, environmentally friendly energy sources and the sensible use of energy throughout the economy. We have the tools to achieve a better energy future -- in the technological prowess of academia and industry, the cutting-edge public policies now being pioneered in states across the country, and in our vast reserves of energy from the sun, wind and crops.

The technology to tap those resources is advancing rapidly and is increasingly competitive in cost with fossil fuel technologies. Momentum around renewable energy policies is building. Already, 22 states have (omit already) adopted policies requiring utilities to increase their use of renewable energy. But we need to make a national commitment to dramatically increase the amount of renewable energy we use to generate our power.

We're asking citizens to join us in calling on Congress to adopt a Renewable Electricity Standard that would require that utilities generate at least 20 percent of their electricity from clean, renewable sources by 2020.

Wind power could provide as much as 30 percent of America's electricity by 2025 and possibly more as new technologies and practices allow for us to successfully integrate more wind power into America's electricity mix.

Solar and geothermal power can combine to produce another 12 percent of America's electricity, while an assortment of other renewable technologies -- ranging from solar hot water heaters to geothermal heat pumps -- can also make an important contribution.

Additional renewable energy could be generated using new technologies such as wave and tidal power or by achieving technological improvements that would enable us to expand our use of other renewable energy sources.

Tell your Senators to insist upon a new energy future. Click on the link below or copy and paste it into your web browser to take action. Then, ask your friends and family to help out by forwarding this message on to them.

Sincerely,

Erin Bowser

Environment Ohio State Director

ErinB@environmentohio.org