GP: UCS Blasts Bush for Opposing Renewable Energy Provision

["Tom Gray" <tomgray@igc.org>]

Wednesday, July 17, 2002
UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS
CONTACT: Alan Nogee 617-547-5552
Paul Fain 202-223-6133

Bush and Power Companies Oppose Lone Star in Energy Bill
Opposition to Renewable Electricity Contradicts Administration's Own
Study

WASHINGTON, July 17 -- The Bush administration and big electric
utilities have announced their opposition to a Senate energy bill
provision that would increase wind, solar and other renewable energy
produced by major electric companies to 10 percent by 2020. This
opposition to one of the lone bright spots in the energy bill comes
despite findings from the administration's Energy Information
Administration (EIA) and new data from the Union of Concerned
Scientists that show that the provision could be a boon for consumers
and the economy.

"Bush's opposition to the renewable electricity standard makes no
sense given that its own study shows that the renewable electricity
standard would actually save consumers billions of dollars," said
Alan Nogee, UCS Clean Energy Program Director. "The administration is
catering to big utilities that want to continue dishing out the same
old mix of dirty fossil fuels. The summer air conditioning and smog
season is a stark reminder of the need to develop clean energy
sources."

The Senate energy bill includes a renewable electricity standard that
requires major electric companies to increase sales of electricity
from wind, solar and other renewable sources from 2 percent today to
about 10 percent by 2020. This would result in a quadrupling, by
2020, of the amount of clean, renewable energy produced. The 74,000
megawatts of renewable energy that would be online by 2020 would be
enough to power about 53 million homes. Twelve states, including
Texas, have enacted their own renewable electricity standards.

"Because of the Texas renewable electricity standard that President
Bush signed when he was Governor of Texas, the amount of wind
turbines built in Texas last year was more than those built in the
entire U.S. in any year," Nogee said. "It's a shame that Bush won't
support the clean air, consumer savings and energy security benefits
that renewable energy could provide on the national level."

New research from UCS finds that the Senate's renewable electricity
standard could save consumers nearly $3 billion through 2020. Recent
analysis by the Bush EIA shows that a more comprehensive 10 percent
renewable electricity standard than the one included in the Senate
energy bill would save consumers over $13 billion through 2020 on
reduced energy bills. Despite this evidence, Secretary of Energy
Spencer Abraham recently sent a letter to Congress stating that the
administration opposes the federal renewable electricity standard.
In
addition to opposing the consumer-friendly renewable energy standard,
utilities and Washington are colluding to propose weakening other
consumer protections in the electricity market.

Energy technologies like wind, solar and bioenergy can also help
reduce the emissions of heat-trapping gases that are causing global
warming, as well as reducing smog-forming pollution that fossil-fuel
burning power plants emit. These clean electricity sources are
available throughout United States. For example, Illinois has the
technical potential to generate all of its current electricity needs
from renewable power alone.

For more information on the federal renewable electricity standard
see
www.ucsusa.org



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