1600s
Colonial America
utilizes wood, coal,
candles and whale oil.
Wood is the most
popular source of heat
for homes into the late
1800s
1748
1752
Commercial
production of
coal begins in
the U.S. near
Richmond,
Virginia
Late 1700s
Benjamin
Franklin
discovers
lightning is
electricity
The transition
from wood to
coal steam fuels
the Industrial
Revolution
1800s
Coal becomes
the fuel of
choice. It
powers the
railway system
and fuels steam
engines
1821
1850s
Michael
Faraday
creates the
first electric
motor
Kerosene from
petroleum steadily
replaces whale oil as
the chief illuminant in
lamps. Some species of
whale are hunted
almost to extinction
1859
Edwin L. Drake
drilled the world’s
first oil well and
launches the
modern petroleum
industry
1880
1882
Thomas Edison
produces the
first successful
light bulb
1891
The Nation’s first
coal-fired electric
generating
station opens in
New York City
1908
First
windmill for
power
generation
Henry Ford
introduces the
first successful
mass production
car
1912
A liquefied
natural gas
plant opens in
West Virginia
1915
1941
The first
petroleum
refinery opens
in California
1950s
A liquefaction
plant for LNG
opens in
Cleveland,
Ohio
Cars ownership
expands; induced by
interstate highways
Photovoltaic cells are
invented (solar)
1957
The first
nuclear
power
plant opens
in the U.S.
1970s
Biofuels
emerge as an
alternative to
oil; first Arab
oil embargo
1973
1979
A revolution
in Iran leads
to oil crisis
Three-mile
island (largest
nuclear
accident in
the U.S.)
1980s
1986
Nuclear
energy
replaces
hydropower as
the second
largest source
of electricity in
the U.S.
Chernobyl
Nuclear
Disaster
(considered
the worst
nuclear
accident in
history)
70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
The system
ages and the
nation
becomes oil
import
dependent
1996
The “Watts Bar”
Plant, in
Tennessee, is the
last nuclear
power plant to
go online
2000s
Wind, solar,
and biofuel
developments gain
steam
2005
Price of
natural gas
hits a record
high
2007
Dramatic
expansion of
hydraulic
fracking
2008
Price of
crude oil
hits record
high of
$147/barrel
2010
2011
Deepwater
Horizon drilling
rig explodes and
results in largest
U.S. oil spill ever
2011
The average
price of
gasoline again
nears $4/gallon
Worst nuclear
disaster since
Chernobyl follows an
earthquake and
tsunami at Fukushima
Daiichi Nuclear
Power Plant in Japan
Today’s Energy System Is Aging Rapidly
• The Nation watches as the system ages
with no plan for the future
• The older the system, the higher the
risk of breakdown, endangering
people and the environment
• The 21st century warrants an update and
an upgrade
• Robust energy supplies and latest
technologies provide unlimited
opportunity for more sustainable,
affordable energy
The Nation’s Daily Energy Demand
• 20 million barrels of oil = 10,000 gallons per second
• 60 billion cubic feet of natural gas
– Enough cubic feet to cover the distance from the Earth to moon
and back 25x a day
• A train car load of coal every 3 seconds (1200/hr)
– 1200 railroad cars an hour = 28,000 railroad cars of coal every
day
•
•
•
•
600+ coal plants, average age: 39, design life 50
104 nuclear plants, average age: 30+, design life 40
Over 15000 wind turbines, less than 1% of supply
1000s of acres of solar panels, less than 1% of supply
CFAE Believes
Energy must be nonpartisan and
non-political:
• Available, so the Nation is secure
• Affordable, so the Nation is
competitive; so lifestyles endure
• Sustainable, so future generations
are protected
CFAE: Four Mores
CFAE: Four Mores
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Oil
Coal
Gas
Nuclear
Biofuels
Hydropower
Geothermal
Solar
Wind
Hydrogen
•
Manage water,
gaseous waste
Utilize clean
technology
Capture, treat
and store
emissions
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Energy efficient
homes and
buildings
More efficient
use of land
Energy efficient
cars, equipment
New legal
governance
More, new
energy
infrastructure
CFAE: Education for All
• Commit to affordable, sustainable energy for all
consumers, always
• Explain comprehensive energy, environmental solutions
for national security and competiveness
• Educate general public, government, corporate and NGO
officials and staff
• Engage all citizens through social media
• Support energy from all sources, environmental
protection, and technology to increase efficiency
• Support infrastructure to move energy from producers to
consumers
• Activate informed citizens to influence policy
What CFAE and You Can Do
• Become informed about energy and environmental basics
through reading, websites, webinars, discussions
• Share Four Mores information with family, friends and
community through personal engagement and outreach
• Become a CFAE Ambassador, equipped and committed to
educate others
• Start a Voluntary Association of friends and colleagues to
expand outreach potential and opportunities to engage
• Maintain non-partisan commitment to education
• Solicit funding support from consumer companies, individuals
What CFAE Does Not Do
• Lobby for specific legislation
• Serve or support partisan
party positions or initiatives
• Promote ideology of any
political party
• Accept financial support
from energy producers
• Limit technology or sources
of energy
• Limit supply or demand
• Align with narrow special
interests
• Make political contributions
CFAE and Public Policy
• The future of energy is dependent on sound public policy
– Individuals have to inform officials about public policy
needs at the local, state and federal level
• The energy supply system is fragmented, competitive and
commercial
– Policy needs to be comprehensive, systemic and holistic
• The history of public policy has been fragmented, combative
and special interest driven
– Future public policy should serve the general public while
remaining commercially supplied
The Perversity of Partisanship
• The last 40 years have seen continuous public policy
failure:
– 8 Presidents and 19 Congresses have failed to
produce energy policy at the national level, since the
first Arab oil embargo
– State programs are all over the map
– Local programs are sporadic and often unachievable
Addressing Public Policy Failure
• CFAE supports
sustainable and
affordable energy policy
through:
– An informed citizenry
– Emphasis on
planning and
execution of the plan
– Fundamental
democratic reform of
federal governance
Towards Sound Energy Policy
• Energy policy needs to incorporate the Four Mores: supply,
infrastructure, environmental protection, technology
• Energy policy requires plans at the federal, state and local levels,
leveraging off a national strategy for energy, where plans are:
–
Short-term: 0 - 10 years
–
Medium-term: 10 - 25 years
–
Long-term: 25 - 50 years
• Energy policy has to override short term political time priorities to
achieve energy time solutions
• Energy policy needs to eliminate the partisanship that so frustrates
the public interest
• Energy policy has to rise above special interest to deliver on the
general interest
The First More: More Energy From All
Sources is Essential
•
•
•
•
•
Oil
Coal
Gas
Nuclear
Biofuels
•
•
•
•
•
Hydropower
Geothermal
Solar
Wind
Hydrogen
The Second More: More Technology For
Efficiency
• The most affordable energy is the energy we never use
– When efficiency in the use of energy means that we use less, we
save the costs of what we don't use.
– We also defer the availability of that energy to the future.
• The most effective conservation that we could ever consider is that of
adopting efficient technology in all of our devices, homes, buildings,
vehicles and pursuits that consume energy.
• There is extraordinary potential for energy conservation and energy
savings through technology and innovation
• We’ll nonetheless still need more energy because populations increase
The Third More: More Environmental
Protection for Land, Water and Air
•
Energy and the environment present ongoing and sustained challenges
to producers, transporters and consumers and future generations
–
Some forms of energy are produced from the destruction of
molecules. Thus there are environmental impact issues to be dealt
with. Other forms of energy require infrastructure that impacts the
landscape. Still other forms dam rivers or create nuclear waste.
–
As the future unfolds so-called "clean" or "green" forms of energy also
have environmental impacts that need to be managed.
•
We believe that technology and regulation must go a long way to
controlling, reducing and even capturing and storing emissions
•
Voluntarism is noble, but not enough
The Fourth More: More Infrastructure
• Energy is produced where it is most efficient to produce it
– Most times it is a long way from the consumer
– Most people prefer to avoid proximity to infrastructure
• Infrastructure refers to the structures that produce, store, and
distribute energy from where it is produced to where it is consumed
– Infrastructure includes platforms to produce oil and gas, coal
mines, pipelines, rail lines and rail yards, transformers, poles and
lines, ethanol distilleries, wind and solar farms, liquefied natural
gas terminals, dams, nuclear plants, and “green spaces” that
often surround critical infrastructure
Fundamental Reform of Energy
Governance is Required
• Politics as usual will not deliver the 21st century energy
system the nation needs
• Drawing from history, democratic reform can utilize the
Independent Regulatory Commission model
• The independent commission works for society and
citizens, not for “politics as usual” or politicians
• Expert governors are accountable for results not rhetoric
Governance Reform Requires
Legislation
Congress should create authorities for an independent
commission to deliver a plan to provide:
1. More supply from all sources
2. More technology to deliver efficiency
3. More environmental protection for land, water and air
4. More infrastructure to deliver energy
Governance Reform: Independent
Commission
• Legal creation of an independent regulatory commission established
by Congress, signed into law by the President to manage the nation’s
energy and environmental future by establishing:
– An independent national board of governors and eight regional
boards
– Authorities to govern a short, medium and long term energy
plan for the nation
• Governors are Presidential appointees, with Senate Advice and
Consent, including subject matter experts in energy, science,
technology, consumerism, environment, business and finance
– Governor terms are 14 years
– Chairman’s term is 4 years
Governance Reform Practicalities
• Regional Boards work with and across states to enable
state planning and regional integration
• In like manner, state agencies work with local
governments on local planning and integration
• Companies do what they've always done: produce energy
and equipment, and build infrastructure while protecting
the environment, guided by the short, medium and long
term plan for the nation
• Citizen activation and influence insures successful launch
and sustained oversight
Get Involved and Shape Future Energy
Policy
•
Become better informed and well read. Learn the Four Mores.
http://www.citizensforaffordableenergy.org/
•
Submit articles of interest on all kinds of energy, technology,
environment and infrastructure to CFAE
•
Become a CFAE Ambassador; Form a Voluntary Association
•
Reach out to friends, associations and community groups
•
Inform your friends and followers about CFAE on Facebook and Twitter!
• Blog on Facebook and Twitter
•
Stay connected for new information and developments
•
Activate your citizenship in ways you’ve always wanted to.
Become An Informed Energy Citizen:
Read And Spread the Word
http://www.citizensforaffordableenergy.org/
Become An Informed Energy Citizen:
Read And Spread the Word
http://www.citizensforaffordableenergy.org/