Will U.S. Win the Green Race?

New Resolution Offered as Gulf States Threaten to Take U.S. Lead in Green Technology

Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD), the lone voice in Congress about energy independence since 1992.

Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) introduced a bill January 6 proposing a “Man on the Moon” project to accelerate the transition to renewable fuels just as gulf states such as Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Dubai and others invest billions in developing green technologies.

The U.S. may soon find itself in a “Green Race” with wealthy oil-states that are funding research projects in the West ranging from Caltech to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Imperial College London, according to a report in the New York Times.  The only person standing in their way is the slightly-built but tenacious Congressman from Maryland.

Since 1992, Bartlett has been the lone voice in Congress urging his colleagues to take action with regard to the very well documented scientific prediction of “peak oil,” when half of all known oil reserves are gone.  While many in the U.S. have failed to recognize the wisdom of his call, apparently his words were not lost on the emirates in the Middle East. 

“We know we can’t continue with this carbon footprint,” Mr. Awad of Masdar, Abu Dhabi said in the Times article, “We have to change.  This is why Abu Dhabi must develop new models - for the planet, of course, but also so as not to jeopardize Abu Dhabi.”

Masdar may be located in the heart of an oil-rich nation, but it’s a model city being designed to emit absolutely no carbon emissions with the help of a British architect, Norman Foster, a branch campus of MIT and billions of dollars collected from U.S. consumers who have yet to fully comprehend the importance of transitioning to green energy.

President-elect Obama’s plan to use the technological advantage the U.S. still has to lead the country out of the recession is welcome news in many sectors, but his proposed $15 billion investment pales in comparison to the money spent by Arab states that are funding research conducted by western experts who have difficulty finding the money at home. 

Bartlett’s proposal calls for a collaboration with international allies to establish an energy project “… with the magnitude, creativity and sense of urgency of the ‘Man on the Moon’ project to develop a comprehensive plan to address the challenges presented by peak oil.” 

The Democratic President-elect and Republican Congressman are apparently both on the right track, because economic data from the American Solar Energy Society and Management Information Services, Inc. indicates that nine million jobs and revenue of $1,045 billion were created in the renewable energy sector in 2007.  The industry grew by a factor of three compared to the U.S. economy with the solar thermal, photovoltaic, biodiesel and ethanol sectors each experiencing 25 percent annual growth.

International authorities are aligned with the idea to invest in green technology as a way out of the fiscal crisis facing the globe.  The International Energy Agency (IEA) issued a release on December 8 from the U.N. climate talks in Poznan, Poland reflecting the ideas of both Bartlett and Obama.

“Countries planning fiscal stimulus packages should invest in energy efficiency and clean technologies to build [a] sustainable infrastructure,” said Nobuo Tanaka, Executive Director of the IEA.  “We think there is an enormous opportunity to develop a ‘Clean Energy New Deal’ to achieve energy security, economic and environmental goals.”

Oil-rich nations, an expert international energy agency, economic data, an incredibly charismatic President-elect and one tough Congressman from Maryland are all in agreement.  Investment in green energy makes sense.

What are we waiting for?  Let’s roll.