Alternative energy should be priority
We need an "Apollo" program for energy independence.
Elected officials and environmental organizations have written me with the good news that the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed an energy bill that includes a renewable electricity standard. Electric companies have to provide 15 percent of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020.
This is a step in the right direction, but it's not enough. In 2020, we'll still be using fossil fuels and nuclear power to provide 85 percent of our electricity.
While our armed forces struggle against insurgents and terrorists in Iraq, it cannot be denied that we are focused on that part of the world because of its oil reserves.
Closer to home, BP intends to increase the amounts of ammonia and silt it puts into our source of drinking water (Lake Michigan) with the expansion of its Whiting, Ind., oil refinery.
Sacrificing lives in Iraq and fresh water in the Midwest is a steep price to pay to see that our gas tanks are full.
While scientists try to determine the actual cause of atmospheric warming, shills for the energy companies are doing their best to create the illusion of a serious debate on the matter.
As world population soars, we are wasting valuable time debating, when we should be developing alternative, non-polluting sources of energy, which will eliminate the need for fuels that pollute or contaminate the environment, and the need for power struggles with other countries.
Our president should announce a 10 year "Apollo" program for alternative energy development. Within 10 years, we will be energy independent and will export our newly developed technology to the rest of the world (i.e. China and India). Our plan will create thousands of American jobs and decrease the world's footprint on the environment.
While we're waiting for the president to take this decisive action, and I don't think I'll hold my breath, Congress must begin working in September to pass the two bills that at least start us on the road to energy independence: the Safe Climate Act or the Climate Stewardship Act.
Lee Mishkin
Buffalo Grove