OPINION:
The 8th annual National Clean Energy Week (NCEW) is here, and there is plenty to celebrate!
NCEW is a bipartisan effort aimed at highlighting the importance of clean energy development in the United States. For one whole week, clean energy advocates and policymakers come together to explore the challenges facing America’s energy industry and the commonsense solutions we have with which to meet them.
As chair of NCEW, I am proud although perhaps a bit biased to say this year’s celebration is going to be one for the books. Not only have we seen record amounts of clean energy development and job creation over the past year, but recent polling from Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES) assures us that we are on the right track with American voters.
What do the polls tell us? Americans believe the climate is changing. They want more clean energy. And they want to do so through free market principles not government mandates.
For me, that is an easy message to understand. As a lifelong Republican and mother who is dedicated to leaving this planet better than I found it for my children and future generations, I see clearly our pathway forward is through more American-made clean energy.
From the solar panels in Arizona and wind farms in Iowa to the nuclear plants in the Southeast and hydropower dams in the West, clean energy is happening all around us providing an excellent opportunity for the United States to lead the world in clean energy innovation and emissions reduction.
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As we are sure to hear from energy leaders throughout National Clean Energy Week, businesses need certainty most of all to continue expanding and reducing emissions. That means creating a regulatory framework that rewards investment, not one that results in duplicative permitting processes, costly delays and decades of frivolous litigation.
While there is strong momentum in Congress to pass legislation that would reform our broken permitting process, NCEW aims to highlight exactly how modernizing our permitting system in the United States will speed up clean energy projects already in development, attract additional investment and ensure that we can continue to meet growing energy demand with lower-carbon resources.
Clean energy tax credits many of which have Republican roots and enjoy a history of bipartisan support are also key to ensuring local communities can reap the benefits of clean energy production. Since the recent clean energy tax credits went into effect, the United States has created 46,000 clean energy jobs in congressional districts across the country, primarily in those districts represented by Republicans.
This development has helped turn the tide for many conservatives who experience the benefits of clean energy, including job creation, lower energy costs and community investment from companies that may not have occurred otherwise. Incentives like this are critical, particularly for new and nascent technologies working to get off the ground. Hydrogen, for example, can change the game when it comes to low-carbon energy production and carbon capture, utilization and storage. With seven regional Hydrogen Hubs going up across the country, it’s imperative to make sure the incentives from the federal government are aligned with what is needed by industry.
The United States is home to the brightest minds in the world, which is why there is no excuse for us not to continue leading the world in energy development and emissions reduction. Our nation has a strong history of leadership when it comes to deploying new technologies. We want to maintain that leadership by capitalizing on our carbon advantage.
In 2006, the United States’ manufacturing output was double that of China. Today, China’s manufacturing output is double that of the United States, and our reliance on China for goods and resources has similarly grown. Not only is this dangerous for our national security, but it has a negative impact on our environment as well. In fact, the average product manufactured in China results in three times the emissions than if that were product were manufactured in the United States.
Achieving dominance over China and other foreign adversaries like Russia when it comes to energy production is crucial, which means we must continue to invest in research and development at our national laboratories and encourage adoption of new, low-carbon technologies by American energy producers.
We can achieve these objectives by empowering our energy producers to do what they do best and by eliminating government mandates that do more harm than good. National Clean Energy Week is the perfect opportunity to elevate these important conversations and more.
I hope you will join me, alongside industry leaders, policy experts, and lawmakers, in celebrating NCEW as we work toward providing certainty for energy producers, targeted investments and global leadership all in the name of providing clean, affordable, reliable American-made energy for all.
• Heather Reams is president of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES). She also serves as chair of National Clean Energy Week.
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