In the Pipeline: 3/11/11
Yes my economically illiterate green friends, it’s called the Jevons paradox— greater energy efficiency can actually lead to more energy use overall. Auto Blog (3/10/11) reports: Sweden seems to be experiencing what experts call a backfire effect from the company’s rash of green car sales. Swedish car buyers have been snapping up clean diesel and ethanol vehicles in droves thanks to sizable government incentives, but, according to reports, the nation has actually seen its emissions from the transportation sector increase by an impressive 100,000 tons. What happened? According to statistics from the Swedish Transportation Agency, average emissions from new cars in the country decreased from 164 to 151 grams of CO2 per kilometer driven, Swedish drivers used their green cars to cover more territory than ever before. Thanks in part to better fuel economy and the idea that a green vehicle has a slimmer impact on the environment, the overall result is more fuel burned, more emissions spewed.
Poetic Justice — CA enviros are caught in their own green tape Los Angeles Times (3/10/11) reports: At least two dozen solar, wind and other energy projects currently tangled in bureaucratic and environmental red tape could give California a multibillion dollar boost if they were to move forward, a new report says…The study, commissioned by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, estimates that building and operating 31 stalled energy projects in the state would create 142,100 jobs annually and pump nearly $60 billion into the economy…The report was unveiled as gas prices continued to climb and calls for cleaner sources of energy have been rising…”We have hundreds of laws with thousands of provisions, all of which can stop a project,” said William Kovacs, the U.S. chamber’s senior vice president of environment, technology and regulatory affairs. “As you delay these projects, you put them at economic risk.”
How could Americans not think Dems are responsible for high-energy prices? Sec. Chu wants $10 gas, Sec. Salazar won’t drill and Obama confessed under his plan energy prices would “necessarily skyrocket” Politico (3/10/11) reports: Democratic leaders insist that voters won’t punish their party for high gas prices — but the pain at the pump could make it even harder for them to pass the president’s energy agenda…Republicans have shown no fear in tying the oil price spikes to anything on the Democratic energy agenda, from President Barack Obama’s stance on offshore drilling permits to long dead cap-and-trade legislation and pending climate change rules for power plants… The GOP attacks may have no basis in fact when it comes to changing short-term prices at the pump. But they certainly change the politics on a number of big energy votes looming on the horizon…Floor debates are expected over halting EPA’s climate regulations, offshore drilling and maybe even opening up Alaska ‘s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas development. All are within a hair of going the Republicans’ way, and several rank-and-file Democrats up for reelection hold crucial votes that Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are counting on.
If you thought the oil problem was bad now, just wait until you see the greenies’ solution The Hill (3/10/11) reports: A group of House Democrats introduced legislation Thursday to tap the country’s oil reserves in response to rising prices…“This is the time to deploy a responsible amount of reserves before it is too late,” Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), the author of the new bill, told reporters…Markey’s bill represents the latest effort by Democrats to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), a 727-million-barrel emergency stockpile of oil. But the proposal faces opposition from Republicans and at least one senior House Democrat…The legislation would require that over the next six months at least 30 million barrels of oil be released from the SPR. President Obama ultimately has the authority to release oil from the SPR.
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