Majority of Americans want President to use Veto Power
82.7 percent of Americans support a presidential veto of legislation containing unnecessary Congressional spending
The Council for Retirement Security (CRS), a program of the nonpartisan, nonprofit grassroots citizens organization Our Generation, has released a survey that found that 82.7 percent of respondents support a presidential veto to prevent Congress from spending money from the Social Security Trust Fund on other government programs.
As part of its mission to improve the lives of senior citizens through awareness and advocacy, CRS mailed more than six million questionnaires on a variety of issues noted Rita Smith, the organization’s executive director. “One of the program’s main goals is to make sure the federal government is able to keep its promise to hardworking Americans. People who paid into the Social Security system should be able to receive the benefits they have earned,” Smith stated. “Unfortunately, these benefits are being threatened by Washington’s wasteful spending on pork barrel projects, our growing national debt and profligate deficit spending. President Obama should listen to the overwhelming majority of Americans who think he should use his veto power to stop wasteful Congressional spending.”
Smith said the use of the veto, which President Obama did not use in his first year in office, is the only way to prevent Congress from adding “earmarks” for special interests onto the hefty $3.8 trillion fiscal year 2011 budget the White House recently sent to Capitol Hill. “This budget already contains a $100 billion increase in spending, and we simply can’t afford for Congress to ladle more unnecessary pork on top,” she added.
Smith’s group also urges President Obama to take more measures to curb out-of-control spending. In particular, CRS also supports the President’s call in his State of the Union address for a freeze on discretionary spending with statutory spending caps — as well as veto any expenditure exceeding that limit. “President Obama should keep his campaign promise to reduce earmarks or eliminate them altogether,” Smith said.
CRS is a program of Our Generation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 2009 to research, educate and promote long-term free market solutions to today’s public policy concerns.
Tough times drive Americans to take far more interest in serious issues
Survey Shows Interest in Celebrities Waning
Whether or not Americans heeded President Obama’s inaugural admonition to “put away childish things,” they have certainly developed a lot more interest in serious issues. A new national survey shows self-declared interest in a raft of weighty matters has grown, while almost half of Americans (48.2 percent) say they’ve become less interested in celebrities over the past 12 to 18 months.
Losing their appetite for celebrity antics, 46.4 percent of Americans are more interested in general news than they were. This news-hungry trend is even more pronounced among men than women, with 51 percent of men versus 41.7 percent of women more interested. Taking account of those rating themselves “less interested” (6.7 percent of men versus 10.9 percent of women), the net margin of greater interest in the news is 44.3 percent for men and 30.8 percent of women. This gender skew pertains to all major fields of interest in the survey; higher net percentages of men than women rate themselves more interested.
The findings come from an online “mood monitor” survey of 388 Americans across the country that was commissioned by global integrated marketing communications agency Euro RSCG Worldwide in February 2010. MicroDialogue collected and analyzed the data.
Regarding their own local politics, a net 29.4 percent of men have become more interested, compared with 16.7 percent of women. Men even show a net increase in interest in the local politics of other areas (net 10.8 percent more), whereas women show a net decrease of interest (net 6.2 percent less). Moving the focus up to the politics of their own state, there’s a surge of greater interest with net 47.9 percent more men and net 30.2 percent more women. In terms of the politics of other states, net 23.1 percent of men and 9.4 percent of women are more interested. There are clear, strong increases in interest for domestic politics in general, although the margin is far higher with men than with women (net 42.3 percent men versus net 24.5 percent women).
The Great Recession and head-spinning news from Wall Street have pushed economy and finance firmly center stage for Americans. Huge net margins of 63.4 percent of men and 52.1 percent of women rate themselves more interested in these topics than they were 12 to 18 months ago. Business and corporations have also come in for higher levels of interest, although they’re far more of a guy thing: Net 42.3 percent of men are more interested, compared with net 16 percent of women.
It’s no surprise that health care has garnered far more interest over the past 12 to 18 months. Among men, 67.6 percent are more interested, and among women 61.5 percent are more interested. What is surprising is that a small minority rate themselves less interested in the issue: 6.2 percent of men and 8.3 percent of women. This suggests some Americans have been turned off of the whole subject, despite–or perhaps because of–the health-care reform tug-of-war in Congress and across the media.
Although there are consistently higher percentages of men who are more interested in the big issues, there are consistently higher percentages of women who feel growing disapproval with the issues compared with 12 to 18 months ago. With local politics in their area, a net 1.5 percent of men disapprove (25.8 percent more approving versus 27.3 percent more disapproving) but net 14.6 percent of women disapprove (15.1 percent more approving versus 29.7 percent more disapproving). Feelings about politics in respondents’ state of residence are slightly more soured: Net 13.9 percent of men and net 19.3 percent of women disapprove. Farther from home, feelings about domestic politics in general are even more negative: Net 16.9 percent of men and net 26 percent of women are more disapproving now compared with 12 to 18 months ago.
As well as rating their opinions, respondents were also asked in the survey to give their views on their state in their own words. Although some expressed partisan views and a few praised their local politicians, many others longed for politicians to focus on doing a better job. There was a strong current of opinion in favor of dumping incumbents. As a respondent from New York put it: “Politicians have lost the will to represent the people who voted them in. They are only interested in their own power and interests. Most cannot be trusted. When political parties are too involved with their own politics, we the people and the USA suffer greatly.”
With job losses, bailouts and bonuses still looming large, economy and finance score strong overall negative ratings: Net 29.4 percent of men and 45.4 percent of women disapprove more now. It’s a similar story with business and corporations: Net 31 percent of men and 40.6 percent of women now feel more disapproving compared with 12 to 18 months ago.
“A year into the Obama presidency and 18 months into the economic crisis, Americans are looking more closely and more critically than ever at the public issues that affect them,” said Marian Salzman, president of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, North America. “As households struggle to manage their budgets in the face of a dire employment market, they’re looking more closely to see whether people in power are behaving more responsibly, too.
“Many Americans aren’t liking what they’re seeing. The stronger ‘disapprove’ scores from American women across major issues suggests that women had higher hopes for things to be managed better,” continued Salzman. “With this disgruntled mood prevailing, we can expect a lot of heat and upset in election contests this year. The country was fractious and divided even when the economy was booming a few years ago. It’s hard to see the mood sweetening as long as debt and budget cuts are the order of the day.”
Respondents are also bracing themselves for higher taxes: Net 39.7 percent of men and 39.1 percent of women are pessimistic about taxation levels in the foreseeable future. Adding to the gloom, net 22.7 percent of men and net 45.8 percent of women are pessimistic about the cost of living.
Source: Euro RSCG Worldwide
Missile Defense makes significant financial gains under Obama
Riki Ellison, Chairman and Founder of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance (MDAA), www.missiledefenseadvocacy.org has reviewed the FY2011 Missile Defense Budget released on February 1st by the Department of Defense which offers a substantial increase to the total budget for missile defense. This increase recovers close to half the amount that was cut by the President and Secretary Robert Gates a year ago.
Ellison is one of the top lay experts in the world on the topic of missile defense. His comments and observations include the following:
“Early this week, President Barack Obama’s administration and the Department of Defense announced a substantial increase to the 2011 Missile Defense Budget. The amount, $9.42 billion, equals a 6.13 percent increase from the 2010 budget. This increase, $577 million, recovers close to half the amount that was cut by the President and Secretary Robert Gates a year ago. “
“President Obama has heard the American People; last year a national poll showed nearly nine out of ten people supported missile defense in the United States. This trend was seen across party lines as Democrats, Republicans and Independents were nearly equal in their support. Nearly eight in ten Americans (78%) think research and development of new missile defense systems to protect against future ballistic missile threats is extremely or very important. The majority of the American Public opposed the $1.2 billion cut that President Obama made last year to Missile Defense.”
“To take the change in context, President Obama’s Missile Defense Budget request is 1.19 percent of the Department of Defense Budget. The funds are used for non-lethal and purely defensive weapons systems that do not harm or kill. There is no question as the threat continues to advance more support continues to be needed. “
“One outstanding concern of the President’s 2011 budget request is the lack of deployed sensors, communications and integration that would fully enable the Administration’s Missile Defense Plan to achieve one of its goals; to defend our regional interests, including our deployed troops and allies, in the time frame he set out. Another concern is the continued modernization of the GBIs and the bi-annual testing required for high confidence in the system.”
Ellison closed with: “We are in a world that presents a devastating threat to our public safety and national security as our President clearly stated ‘Now, even as we prosecute two wars, we’re also confronting perhaps the greatest danger to the American people — the threat of nuclear weapons’.”
Among the highlights of the 2011 Missile Defense Budget Request are:
– Increase of development funding of $359 million for the Ground Based Interceptors.
– Plans to construct 38 GBI silos and to buy 56 GBIs.
– A significant reversal from the 30 silos and 44 GBIs from last years request.
– Increase of 249 THAAD (142) and AEGIS SM3 (107) land and sea-based regional missile defense interceptors for a total of 867 by 2015.
– Upgrades of 3 additional Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense Ships.
– Addition of three new Missile Defense programs:
– $256 million for the Land-Based SM3 program that will go to over a $1.0 Billion by 2015.
– $99 million to Directed Energy Programs.
– $67 million for a future space based satellite sensor constellation called Precision Tracking Space System (PTSS) that will go to $1.2 Billion by 2015.
– Increase to $1.47 billion (up $31 million) for the AEGIS program.
– Increase to $1.0 billion (up $52 million) for the Patriot Terminal Defense interceptors and systems.
– Increase to $1.11 billion (up $290 million) for missile defense testing and targets.
– Increase to $319 million (up $63 million) for co-development with Japan on the Sea Based SM3-BlockIIa interceptor.
CDA: Obama should end the Cuba Travel Ban and stop wasting U.S. funds on regime change effort
Sarah Stephens, executive director of the Center for Democracy in the Americas, issued the following statement about the Foreign Aid budget request for 2011 which proposes $20 million in wasteful spending on regime change programs for Cuba:
“Unless it’s okay for the United States government to waste money on foreign aid programs that don’t work, the Obama administration should remove the $20 million in spending it has proposed on ‘regime change’ on Cuba.
“Many activities funded by this program are illegal in Cuba, would certainly be illegal if Cuba conducted them in our country, and they have long histories of wasteful spending in the U.S. and hurting the intended beneficiaries in Cuba. Activities funded by this program recently landed a U.S. contractor in a Cuban prison. If you ever wanted to find a wasteful and counter-productive foreign aid program, this is it.
“The paradox is this: not one of these wasteful programs can hold a candle to the one policy change that would pour American information and ideas into Cuba, and bring both countries together – namely, ending the travel ban that stops all Americans from visiting the island and engaging the Cuban people, a ‘program’ which would cost the taxpayers nothing.”
The Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA) is devoted to changing U.S. policy toward the countries of the Americas by basing our relations on mutual respect, fostering dialogue with those governments and movements with which U.S. policy is at odds, and recognizing positive trends in democracy and governance. For more information about CDA, visit our website.
CDA’s report, “9 Ways for US to Talk to Cuba and for Cuba to Talk to US,” published last year, recommended ending counter-productive ‘regime change’ programs and relying instead on policies of engagement to advance America’s interests and lead to normal relations between the U.S. and Cuba.
Source: The Center for Democracy in the Americas
President Obama tasks former presidents Bush and Clinton with Fundraising for Haiti Recovery
Presidential Tag-Team Will Help Keep the World Focused on Haiti
The U.S. Fund for UNICEF today applauded the joint efforts of President Obama and Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush in ensuring that the American response to the crisis in Haiti is sustained over the long-term.
“On behalf of Haiti’s children, we applaud the joint initiative of President Obama and Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to provide leadership, resources and visibility to the long term recovery effort,” said Caryl Stern, President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.
“When the media spotlight fades from the initial disaster relief, UNICEF and its partners will still be on the ground, working to build Haiti back and this cannot be accomplished with out sustained support. Though we cannot undo the damage of Tuesday’s earthquake, we can decide to make Haiti’s children a priority and work to ensure their childhoods are not irrevocably destroyed by its aftermath.”
Efforts are underway to unload and deliver UNICEF emergency supplies and equipment that arrived in Port-au-Prince by plane in the early hours this morning. This first UNICEF shipment included water tanks, water purification tablets and rehydration salts. Clean water and sanitation are amongst the most important emergency relief needs following most emergencies, in particular to protect against the serious health risks posed by diarrheal infections and diseases.
Two more planes loaded with relief are planned for the weekend, carrying some 70 metric tons of tents, tarpaulin, and medicine.
Many of Haiti’s public buildings and utilities have been destroyed. There is severe damage to hospitals, schools and the city’s two seaports. This infrastructure damage has resulted in large scale displacement of people from their homes, into makeshift and overcrowded shelters.
As communications systems and infrastructure damaged by the earthquake that hit near Port au Prince on January 12 are slowly being repaired, precise information about the damage is still not available. According to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) some 3.5 million people are estimated to be in the areas affected by the earthquake and its aftershocks. Thousands are feared dead, many more injured and unknown numbers still buried under the rubble.
UNICEF efforts to assist with life-saving and recovery operations in Haiti will focus on clean water and sanitation, therapeutic food for infants and small children, medical supplies and temporary shelter.
To donate to the ongoing emergency relief efforts in Haiti and the Caribbean region, please visit: www.unicefusa.org/haitiquake or call 1-800-4UNICEF.
Source: U.S. Fund for UNICEF
U.S. Government rejoins worldwide consensus on reproductive health
Health and Development Groups Applaud Clinton Speech; Call for Action
A broad coalition of organizations representing millions of Americans applauded statement by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the United States unequivocally supports the worldwide consensus that achieving universal access to reproductive health is critical for individual health, family well-being, broader economic development and a healthy planet.
In a speech today at the State Department, Secretary Clinton declared the U.S. government’s renewed support and dedication to reaching the health and development goals laid out in the International Conference on Population Development and other related UN agreements, including the Millennium Development Goals.
The Secretary said that “women’s health is essential to the prosperity and health of all people,” and that the U.S. has rejoined with all governments to “make the access to reproductive healthcare a basic right.”
During the groundbreaking 1994 United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo, 179 nations laid out an ambitious plan of action to improve health and achieve sustainable development by focusing on individual health needs and human rights, especially for women and girls.
Countries agreed to achieve universal access to reproductive health services by the year 2015, a target reaffirmed in the Millennium Development Goals. Reproductive health services include voluntary contraception that is affordable and safe, sex education programs to prevent unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS, and programs that improve maternal and child health.
“The United States was a major architect of the 1994 Cairo agreement, but U.S. funding for international family planning programs, a major component of reproductive health services, has fallen 23 percent in real dollars since its high in 1995,” said Suzanne Ehlers, Interim President of Population Action International. “Today’s statement by Secretary Clinton marks a return to U.S. leadership on international family planning.”
Investments in reproductive health programs have saved lives and delivered real results. In Mexico, the infant mortality rate fell by 70% between 1970 and 2005, as the use of modern contraceptives nearly doubled. Similar results have been seen in Bangladesh, Egypt, Thailand, and elsewhere.
Conversely, inadequate funding for reproductive health and family planning programs hold grave consequences for women and families. One woman dies needlessly in pregnancy or childbirth every minute of every day, and six million more suffer injury, illness or disability. Each year, between 70 to 80 million unintended pregnancies occur in the developing world.
To meet the unmet need for family planning and achieve the goal of achieving universal access to reproductive health, the coalition of non-profit organizations calls on the Obama Administration to:
– Ensure that the new Global Health Initiative retain a strong focus on interventions to prevent unintended pregnancy, promote women’s health and save women’s lives.
– Ensure that greater access to contraception and reproductive health care remains a high priority within any restructuring of the U.S. government’s foreign assistance program so that women, men and youth can access a comprehensive range of reproductive health services no matter where they are accessing care.
– Work with the U. S. Congress to fund international family planning programs at $1 billion, to reverse a decade of inadequate funding, and eliminate punitive legislative restrictions that continue to tie-up the U.S. contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
“Poll after poll has shown that a majority of Americans across the ideological divide support family planning programs and proven investments in women’s health,” said Tamara Kreinin, Executive Director of Women and Population at the United Nations Foundation. “I hope that Secretary Clinton’s speech is a signal to everyone that the U.S. government is done with political theater and instead will focus on the important work of saving lives.”
Source: CEDPA
The Worst Scandal of 2009: Big money in Politics
What was the biggest scandal of 2009?
Blagojevich trying to sell a Senate seat? Senators, governors, and their mistresses? Allegations that lobbyists were lining up defense earmarks in exchange for straw donations?
No, the biggest scandal of 2009 was that the entire pay-to-play system that dominates Washington and occupies Congress’ time and attention sidetracked bold policies.
One year after President Obama was swept into office on a ticket of change, a wall of big money from the health interests, banks, and Big Oil thwarted, slowed, or deep-sixed legislation in Washington. Special interests were on track to spend $3.3 billion to shape policy outcomes, according to a recent story in Politico. Despite the voters’ mandate for change, the underlying problem of Washington – what author and Washington Post reporter Robert Kaiser calls “too damn much money” – remained unaltered and in many ways, more powerful than ever before.
The bottom line is that America will not see the significant change that a majority of people are demanding until we change the way we pay for political campaigns by getting special interests out of the business of paying for our elections.
“Yes we can” has been blocked by “no you don’t.”
Here are some facts to consider:
The health care debate is a perfect example of all that is wrong.
Everyone agrees health care must be made more affordable, and that more people need coverage. But with the health care industry spending more than $1 million a day this year to lobby for their bottom line, and contributing more than $200 million to candidates for Congress in the 2008 election cycle and first nine months of 2009, it’s not a surprise that reform proposals were watered down.
At the beginning of December, the U.S. House passed legislation to reform the financial regulatory industry.
The vote came fifteen months after the collapse of the financial sector and the $700 billion bailout of Wall Street banks. Reform of Wall Street shouldn’t have been so hard — these firms exploited a weak regulatory regime to wreak havoc on our economy — but throughout 2009, financial, real estate, and insurance interests poured $85 million in campaign contributions into Washington, D.C. They succeeded at watering down sections of the House bill, and have declared all out war on the Senate bill.
As the climate change conference in Copenhagen comes to a close, President Barack Obama’s hands were tied not just by China and India’s unwillingness to negotiate far-reaching agreements.
He was also hemmed in by the politics of passing climate legislation through the U.S. Senate – and the stranglehold that Big Oil and coal companies have over our elected officials. The energy sector has contributed more than $4.5 million to Senators just this year – an off-election year. Senators like Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) have declared that any action on climate change in the Senate faces an uncertain future. Inhofe has received more than $1.2 million in contributions from oil and gas interests during his career.
The swamp of special interest money is rising in Washington and Congress needs a way out.
The Solution: The Fair Elections Now Act
One year later, it’s become clear that change doesn’t come simply with the election of a new president or new members of Congress. To dramatically change the way Washington works we need to change the way campaigns are financed in this country.
It’s time for the Fair Elections Now Act (S. 752, H.R. 1826), legislation that would sever the ties between big money campaign contributors and members of Congress. With Fair Elections, candidates would be able to run a competitive race for congressional office with a blend of small dollar donations and limited public funds. Sponsored by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), this voluntary system would put people in office unencumbered by special interest influence. In addition to Rep. Larson, the House bill has the broad bipartisan and cross-caucus support of 124 members.
There have been a lot of political scandals and intrigue in Washington this year, but the worst of them all is the sordid impact of money in our political process. The scandal is what is legally permitted day in, day out, in Washington, D.C. It is time to change the system and pass the Fair Election Now Act.
www.fairelectionsnow.org.
Source: Common Cause and Public Campaign
Recovery Act keeping Rroughly 189,000 Pennsylvanians out of poverty in recession
Investments Have Boosted Economy, Saved and Created Jobs
Along with boosting the economy and preserving jobs, seven provisions of the federal economic recovery act are also keeping about 189,000 Pennsylvanians from falling into poverty this year, according to a new study from the Washington, DC-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), as a whole, is likely keeping many more Pennsylvanians out of poverty, since these seven provisions account for only about one-fourth of the act’s total funding.
Pennsylvania was one of 11 states to see a statistically significant increase in the official poverty rate from 2007 to 2008, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. In 2008, 1.5 million Pennsylvanians – 12% of the population – were living below the official poverty level.
“These are difficult ecnomic times, but the recovery act has kept things from being much worse, as this study shows,” said Sharon Ward, Director of the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center. “Thousands of Pennsylvania families are getting help making ends meet despite the worst recession in decades.”
Act Includes Expanded Food Stamps, Tax Credits for Workers, Jobless Benefits
The study examined the following seven provisions of the recovery act:
– a new Making Work Pay Tax Credit of up to $400 for workers ($800 for a couple) earning up to $95,000 (up to $190,000 for a couple);
– an expanded Child Tax Credit for lower-income working families with children;
– an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit, including increased tax-credit benefits for a working family with three or more children and for married families to lessen the marriage penalty the EITC can otherwise impose;
– additional weeks of emergency unemployment compensation benefits (paid after a worker’s 26 weeks of regular state unemployment benefits expire);
– an additional $25 per week for unemployed workers to supplement their unemployment benefits;
– a $250 one-time payment to elderly people and people with disabilities who receive Social Security, SSI, or veterans’ benefits; and
– an increase in food stamp benefit levels.
The findings of the report should be instructive for federal policymakers as they consider additional efforts to create jobs and counter the recession, said Arloc Sherman, author of the report.
“Congress agreed to extend the extra unemployment benefits through February,” said Sherman. “But with unemployment likely to remain high for some time, it will need to extend them further. Congress should also extend the act’s tax credits next year so they continue to boost the economy and help families.”
Researchers lacked the data to examine other recovery act elements that are likely fighting poverty as well, such as funding for health care and child care.
Recovery Act Also Helping Economy and Jobs
Along with stemming the increase in poverty during the recession, the recovery act is also boosting the economy and preserving jobs, the study notes.
“When Pennsylvanians spend the extra food stamp or jobless benefits they get from the recovery act in local stores, that helps those stores stay in business and retain their workers,” said Kathy Fisher of Public Citizens for Children and Youth in Philadelphia. “It’s a win-win for families hit hard by the recession and for our state’s economy.”
More than stimulus bills passed in earlier recessions, the recovery act was designed to reach a wide range of low- and middle-income Americans, the report notes. Policymakers included extensive help for low-income families not only because they stand the greatest risk of hardship during recessions but also because they are the most likely to spend quickly whatever money they receive, thereby pumping it into the economy.
Study Uses Broader Definition of Poverty
To determine the poverty-fighting impact of the seven provisions, the researchers used a broad poverty measure, which the National Academy of Sciences has recommended and a wide array of analysts favor, rather than the government’s official measure of poverty. The official measure considers only a family’s cash income, the report explains. Thus, it would miss many of the recovery act provisions that provide non-cash benefits, such as extra food stamps or tax credits.
The report is available at http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3035.
Source: The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center
Copenhagen Forum sees natural gas as key to transitioning to a low-carbon economy
At a major event, the American Clean Skies Foundation (ACSF), the UN Foundation (UNF) and the Worldwatch Institute addressed the potential for natural gas to accelerate the world’s transition to a low-carbon economy. The Copenhagen forum, “Natural Gas, Renewables and Efficiency: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Economy” brought together energy and environmental leaders from industry, government and non-governmental organizations to explore the role natural gas can play in climate action and energy security.
Over the course of the afternoon, the audience heard from a variety of energy newsmakers and experts, including:
– Aubrey K. McClendon, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Chesapeake Energy Corporation; Chairman of the Board, American Clean Skies Foundation
– Christopher Flavin, President, Worldwatch Institute
– David Sandalow, Assistant Secretary for Policy and International Affairs, U.S. Department of Energy
– Ian Smale, Group Head, Strategy and Policy, BP
– U.S. Senator Timothy Wirth, President, UN Foundation
– Vello Kuuskraa, President, Advanced Resources International
“Compared with coal, natural gas allows a 50-70 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions,” said Christopher Flavin, President of the Worldwatch Institute. “It’s a good complement to the wind and solar generators that will be the backbones of a low-carbon electricity system.”
Aubrey K. McClendon, Chairman of ACSF and Chesapeake Energy, the largest explorer of natural gas in the U.S., and Vello Kuuskraa, President of Advanced Resources International, discussed the abundance of natural gas in the U.S. and other parts of the world.
“There really has never been much debate about whether natural gas is a good fuel – its carbon light molecular structure guarantees that,” commented McClendon. “The issue has always been whether there has been enough of it to begin moving our electric generation system in the United States as well as other parts of the world away from carbon-heavy coal and oil. The major natural gas shale plays in the U.S. have made it clear we have enormous reserves of natural gas to successfully address our economic, environmental and energy issues now.”
In his remarks at the forum, U.S. Senator Timothy Wirth noted, “Now that economically accessible reserves in the U.S. have grown by more than 60 percent, it is important to rethink the role of natural gas in climate and energy policy. The dramatic new discoveries and reserves are almost a gift, giving us a chance to develop a faster and smoother transition toward a low-carbon economy.”
The premise that brought forum organizers together is that the expanded availability of natural gas makes it possible to accelerate the decarbonization of energy supplies by substituting natural gas for coal and to a lesser extent oil. In addition, a new generation of flexible, efficient gas-fired generators will facilitate the introduction of larger shares of wind and solar power into the world’s power grids.
Speakers and panelists — including Flavin of Worldwatch, Gigler of KEMA, and Smale of BP — discussed strategies for maximizing the environmental and economic advantages of growing amounts of natural gas in the world’s energy system.
The event also considered the policy issues that must be addressed for gas to play its potential role — ranging from a fair and level carbon market to regulation and taxation of the gas industry and open access and fair pricing in the electricity markets.
The politics and policies from the perspective of developing countries like India were also addressed by Dr. Jyoti Parikh, Executive Director, Integrated Research and Action for Development (IRADe).
“North America’s New Natural Gas Resources and their Potential Impact on Energy and Climate Security,” a comprehensive working document authored jointly by Gregory C. Staple, ACSF CEO and respected climate policy expert, and Dr. Joel L. Swerdlow, author of the noted National Geographic Society Book, Nature’s Medicine, was released at the close of the forum. The working document, which builds a case for why natural gas offers an immediate opportunity for climate action and policies for promoting the constructive transition, is available online at the ACSF Web site, www.cleanskies.org.
Source: American Clean Skies Foundation; UN Foundation; Worldwatch Institute
Denmark, Climate Summit host, tops table of fighting climate change with wind power
In the run-up to the crucial climate change talks in Copenhagen, the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) has published a league table showing which EU countries are best at exploiting CO2-cutting wind energy.
Top of the table is Denmark, with the highest amount of wind energy capacity per square kilometre of national territory. Germany comes a close second and the Netherlands third. Spain, in fourth place, has half the wind power density of Germany. Portugal and Ireland are above the EU average wind power density.
Italy is not far below average, while France and the UK each have less than half of the EU’s average density of wind power capacity. Romania, Slovenia, Malta and Cyprus are floundering at the bottom of the league with next to zero wind power generation per km2.
The density of wind power per km is the best means of measuring and comparing the extent to which different countries exploit their wind power potential. The future of wind power in Denmark looks bright as, according to an August 2009 survey carried out by an independent market research institute, 91% of Danes support the further development of wind power in their country.
If the eight geographically largest Member States had the same density of wind power capacity per km2 as Denmark, they would produce enough wind power to meet 19% of total EU-27 electricity demand and avoid 362 million tonnes of CO2 emissions – equivalent to meeting more than 30% of the EU’s 2020 climate target.
“Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands are European leaders in fighting climate change with wind-powered electricity” said Christian Kjaer, Chief Executive of EWEA. ”The figures released today also reveal the huge potential for wind power growth in most countries. Laggards in wind energy – including France, the UK, Sweden, Finland and Eastern European countries – can easily play catch-up,” Kjaer added.
“The future of wind power in Europe lies in offshore as well as onshore wind power, and some of the pioneer countries will add wind power capacity just by repowering existing plants – replacing old smaller turbines with bigger, more powerful ones which are now available on the market” Kjaer said.
The report containing the just-published league table – entitled “Pure Power” and published today – also outlines EWEA’s predictions for growth in wind power by 2020. The industry calculates that it can meet up to 16.6% of EU electricity demand by 2020, or 14.1% in a lower, business-as-usual scenario.
The eight geographically largest countries in the EU include Sweden and Finland as well as France, Germany, Spain, Italy, UK and Poland.
League table extracted from the Pure Power report: MW of wind energy capacity per 1,000 km2 (End 2008)
Denmark: 73.8
Germany: 67
Netherlands: 53.6
Spain: 33.2
Portugal: 31
Ireland: 14.3
EU-27: 14
Luxembourg: 13.5
Belgium: 12.6
Italy: 12.4
Austria: 11.9
Greece: 7.5
France: 6.2
UK: 5.9
Sweden: 2.3
Czech Republic: 1.9
Estonia: 1.7
Poland: 1.5
Bulgaria: 1.4
Hungary: 1.4
Lithuania: 0.8
Finland: 0.4
Latvia: 0.4
Slovakia: 0.1
Romania: 0
Slovenia: 0
Malta: 0
Cyprus: 0
To download the full report visit http://www.ewea.org/index.php?id=178
Source: European Wind Energy Association (EWEA)