Obama's energy plan

Obama: New Energy for America

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050
• Eliminate the need for Middle-Eastern and Venezuelan oil in ten years
• Get 25% of electricity from renewable sources by 2025

These are the goals of Democratic nominee for president Barack Obama. They are lofty and some say they are impossible. They forget, though, what can happen when a strong president commits his country to a goal. In 1961, John F. Kennedy announced that America would attempt to land on the moon in less than ten years. Just eight years later his impossible goal was realized.

Let's forget the loftyness of Senator Obama's energy goals. In America, anything is possible. Instead, let's focus on some of the most exciting parts of Obama's energy plan.

Advanced Vehicles

Obama's plan is very strong on advanced, fuel-efficient vehicles. As part of his goal to eliminate the need for foreign oil, Obama will attempt to make hybrid cars a reality for the typical American. He will create a $7,000 tax credit for purchasing advanced vehicles. The starting price for a Toyota prius is $21,500. After this tax credit, the effective price of a Prius would be $14,500. Undoubtedly, this will boost sales of advanced vehicles. He also plans to stimulate the development of plug-in hyrbrid cars by converting the entire White House car fleet to plug-in hybrids, as well as dedicating half of federal car purchases to plug-in hybrids. Obama also promises to increase fuel economy standards nationwide.

Cap and Trade

Cap and trade systems are seen as one of the best solutions to lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Cap and trade worked for acid rain, and now Obama wants to make it work for energy. Under such a system, the government caps the amount that all companies collectively are allowed to emit. Then, each company is given a proportionate amount of credits. Companies can trade emission credits, so companies who are cleaner benefit because they can sell more of their emissions credits. This system is prooven, and it is exciting that Obama wants to implement it. This is how Obama plans to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050.

Job Training Programs

If the economy is going to grow along with new technologies, our workers need to be trained in these technologies. Barack Obama will provide federal funding for programs which train workers in clean technologies. Not only this, the programs will also teach energy efficiency to youth.

Domestic Oil and Natural Gas

Barack Obama pledges that his administration would persue oil drilling in Montana and North Dakota. He also supports natural gas pipelines in Texas and Arkansas, as well as prioritizing construction of a natural gas pipeline in Alaska. Such a pipeline could provide up to seven percent of America's natural gas consumption.

Energy Efficiency

Barack Obama promises to make all new federal buildings zero-emissions by 2025. His plan is strong on energy efficiency throughout the country. He also wants to weatherize one million low-income homes every year, a move that would reduce the energy consumption of all those homes. He believes that investing in Americas infrastructure will also increase efficiency, such as investing in new grid technologies and fixing roads and bridges.