Lieberman lights political fire with energy ideas
MSNBC staff and wire reports
Trying to find an issue
In the most ambitious energy plan proposed to date by a Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Joseph Lieberman said Wednesday that he would eliminate the need for foreign oil within 20 years by using coal to create a hydrogen-based economy and by requiring higher mileage vehicles from carmakers. The coal-to-hydrogen idea actually is shared by President Bush -- and opposed by environmental groups that say there are cleaner ways to get energy.
IN A SPEECH at Resources for the Future, an environmental think tank, the Connecticut senator outlined the steps to reduce foreign oil dependence by two-thirds in 10 years with a $25 billion investment and without the drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that President Bush wants.
Ten years beyond that, under Lieberman's plan, all foreign oil imports would be eliminated.
Lieberman said he believes his plan would make the United States stronger globally by relying less on foreign oil, and become stronger domestically because it eliminates price shocks to the U.S. economy and would create jobs from new energy-saving technology.
"As we travel up this path, our air will become cleaner, our people will become healthier," said Lieberman, one of nine Democrats who have announced they are seeking their party's nomination to face President Bush in next year's election.
"But more than that, our nation will become more secure and our economy stronger."
"I'm not going to let foreign countries blow out our families' budgets by running up your heating bills and what you pay at the pump," he added.
HYDROGEN FROM COAL
The most expensive chunk of Lieberman's plan is using domestic coal to get hydrogen, which holds the promise of powering cars, homes and office buildings. When mixed with air in what are called fuel cells, hydrogen creates electricity.
Lieberman would spend $15 billion to develop processes that extract hydrogen from coal. The Bush administration and industry are also excited about this prospect, and figure that new technology can reduce sulfur dioxide pollution while burying carbon dioxide deep underground. Carbon dioxide is seen by many scientists as a leading contributor to global warming.
Environmentalists say burying carbon dioxide is an untested technique with no guarantees that it won't be released over time. They also oppose coal mining because it requires digging into natural areas and can create water pollution.
Lieberman argues that the United States is sitting on a 200-year supply of coal and that the industry is developing "clean coal technology" to minimize environmental impacts while creating new jobs.
But the Natural Resources Defense Council is among the environmental groups wary of the approach. "We've been hearing about clean coal technology for a long time ... and it never quite gets there," said Dan Becker, head of the council's energy and climate change program.
"It would be far more productive" if that $15 billion was spent on renewable energy like solar or wind, Becker said.
TRADING CAR CREDITS
Lieberman's other chief proposal would peg mileage requirements for new cars to an overall goal of saving 2 million barrels of oil a day by 2015. The United States uses about 20 million barrels of oil a day, with half that amount imported.
The standards are now pegged to miles per gallon for types of vehicles, but Lieberman said his proposal would give industry some flexibility by creating an industrywide goal that could then be met via a trading system.
Lieberman sees his plan as a solution to the current fight over federal fuel economy standards. Environmentalists have been pushing for the government to require that vehicles go farther on a gallon of gas, but the industry says the standards are too rigid and don't reflect Americans' preferences for big trucks and sport utility vehicles.
"For too long, we've been caught in a stale debate between those who say that fuel efficiency standards are unachievable and those who want to micromanage the actions of individual automobile manufacturers," Lieberman said.
Lieberman's plan would allow companies who exceed standards to receive credits they could sell to their competitors.
"Under my plan, if one company decides to build less-efficient cars, it will be able to trade with a more efficient automaker so that the entire industry reaches our overall goal," Lieberman said.
While automakers have supported an approach that would set a goal of saving gallons of oil, they did not see Lieberman's plan as a solution. Gloria Bergquist, spokeswoman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said that requiring a reduction of 2 million barrels a day would be more stringent than the fuel economy proposals that the industry has already fought back in the Senate.
TAX CREDITS, RENEWABLES
Other parts of Lieberman's plan would:
Invest $6.5 billion in fuel cell research -- more than 5 times what the Bush administration is spending -- and set a goal of 100,000 fuel cell vehicles on the road by 2010 and 2.5 million by 2020.
Provide a tax credit of at least $1,000 per alternative fuel vehicle -- such as gas-electric hybrids and eventually fuel cell cars -- increasing up to $5,000 depending on the amount of oil conserved by the vehicle.
Require utilities to generate more of their electricity from renewable resources like wind and solar energy.
Keep the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska closed to oil drilling, but encourage drilling in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
In an effort to differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack and from Bush, many of the Democratic candidates for their party's presidential nomination are presenting policy statements.
Rep. Richard Gephardt recently introduced a major health care plan. His campaign office on Wednesday sent a memo reminding reporters that the Democrat issued his own energy plan in February in which he called for an "Apollo project" for energy. The plan mentions fuel cells, renewable energy and tax credits but is not as specific as Lieberman's.
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