Article
Energy Policy
On Nov. 18th 2008, Barack Obama renewed his promise to make a decisive break with George W Bush on the environment, using a summit convened by Arnold Schwarzenegger to promise a "new chapter in America's leadership on climate change".
Q: Do you think the speech you made on Nov. 18th implies a change or shift in America’s policy on energy or climate change because in the past the US hasn’t been really cooperative on combating global climate change?
B: Yes, I really think this is a serious shift in American policy on addressing climate issues. As the governor of Colorado, I put in place a climate action plan in Oct. of 2007. The way we spoke about that sounds very much like how Barack Obama talks about his goals and addressing climate change as a country. We did not have federal leadership. But what we had, our governors in states, their acting really is laboratories. And we saw also in the American public a shift in thinking about climate. So I really believe this is a serious course correction and you’ll see United States as a global leader in addressing climate change after Barack Obama swore in his president.
Q: Does it mean that we are going to see you as working with other countries in the world in things like Bali Road Map and previously Kyoto pact?
B: Copenhagen will be the next serious conference that will in December 2009. And I think you will see United States participate in that in a way far different than they participated after George Bush became president when we made the decision not to sign Kyoto, not to submit to the United States senate for ratification.
Q: And you made a lot trouble in Bali last time.
B: I know.
Q: So it’s going to be better this time with Obama?
B: In Colorado we have 43 scientists who participated in the international panel on climate change. They are all people who were part of the Nobel Prize and the IPCC. And just knowing our scientific community and knowing how important they believe it is that we address climate change. I have this real deeply seated belief that United States of America under Obama’s leadership will become a leader in addressing the climate change.
Q: But there’s going be a lot of pressure on Obama because obviously he will have to dis-sacrifice the interests of a lot of industries.
B: We believe what we need to do is to address the climate and we need to put in place policies that support the renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy conservation and we believe you can create jobs in doing it. We have been able to demonstrate that in Colorado over the last two years. With that, the people in Colorado have become believers that you can do economic development. So there may be some industries that look differently than they used to. But quite frankly, if we are going to address climate change, we have to do it. And if the people can become convinced that you can do that with economic development and you can do it by creating jobs. Then that’s a win-win for Americans.
Q: You are very right in saying that things will look different. Industries will look different. But we can still create jobs using renewable energy and by promoting the use of renewable energy. But you know people don’t like change.
B: Whether they like it or not, climate change is happening. And if climate change is happening, then we need to address it from a policy perspective. We need individuals in America to behave differently, to reduce their carbon footprint. But we also have to support that with policies by promoting renewable energy, by promoting the conversion of automobiles factories. So we were actually manufacturing electric cars, manufacturing hybrid. There will be a greater deal of technology coming on board. They will help us with energy efficiency conservation. All of those things as well can be viewed as places where we can stimulate the economy.
Q: Where does energy plan stand in his to-do list?
B: I believe he’s right about this. He can develop a different energy policy as part of a job creation and stimulus. He and I have spoken about really the need to redo our grid and America to make it more efficient, to make it integrated throughout the country better. You build a new grid. You can find a way to stimulate jobs. Some of that will be private sector investment because I think the private sector is waiting for that to happen and some may be private public partnerships. But it’s going to happen.
Q: Over the past 8 years, has there been sufficient support from the government, be a local government or a federal level to the promotion of these new technology companies?
B: I would say no.
Q: Who has been lagging?
B: Policies that support new research and development, policies that support investment for renewable energy, policies that give scientists a reason to hope. Partly you have to understand what I’ve come down to understand that places like these scientific diverse return on your investment may not be tomorrow, a year from now. And maybe longer term. I just feel like the Bush administration did not understand that.
Q: What do you think of China’s role in promoting renewable energy and combating global climate change. You will just be frank coz the United States and China have been finger pointing at each other from fulfilling the responsibility.
B: I’ve got a great visit with a vice minister, the ministry of foreign
affairs. And we both agree that we’d be best not to point fingers and we’d be
best not to try to find some place in conflict, but think about how we can
collaborate. United States of America has to reduce its greenhouse gas emission.
It just has to. And it has to think about all the policies that can support
that. So does China. We live in a world where the carbon atom does not respect
boundaries. And if you admit the CO2 in the air, it doesn’t necessarily remain
within your boundaries. This global warming that’s happening is a global issue.