The Pickens Plan

With the jumpy gas prices and the new president elect I figured a little talk about energy policy was in order.  My friend Sam and I often debate politics, and he pointed me to one interesting site. 

The Pickens Plan is actually pretty simple. We need to get off the oil addiction, and start feeding our selves. The basic concept is, we should do as much as we can, with what we have, and according to the studies behind the plan, what we have is more potential wind power then any other nation on the planet, plus a lot of natural gas.

From the site:

In 1970, we imported 24% of our oil.

Today it's nearly 70% and growing.

As imports grow and world prices rise, the amount of money we send to foreign nations every year is soaring. At current oil prices, we will send $700 billion dollars out of the country this year alone — that's four times the annual cost of the Iraq war.

The United States is the Saudi Arabia of wind power.

Studies from around the world show that the Great Plains States are home to the greatest wind energy potential in the world — by far.

The Department of Energy reports that 20% of America's electricity can come from wind. North Dakota alone has the potential to provide power for more than a quarter of the country.

A cheap new replacement for foreign oil.

The Honda Civic GX Natural Gas Vehicle is the cleanest internal-combustion vehicle in the world according to the EPA.

Natural gas and bio-fuels are the only domestic energy sources used for transportation.

Cleaner
Natural gas is the cleanest transportation fuel available today.  According to the California Energy Commission, critical greenhouse gas emissions from natural gas are 23% lower than diesel and 30% lower than gasoline.

Cheaper
Natural gas is significantly less expensive than gasoline or diesel. In places like Utah and Oklahoma, prices are less than $1 a gallon. To see fueling stations and costs in your area, check out cngprices.com.

Domestic
Natural gas is our country's second largest energy resource and a vital component of our energy supply. 98% of the natural gas used in the United States is from North America. But 70% of our oil is purchased from foreign nations.

I’ve always been a fan of energy diversity, so personally, I think this would definitely be a step in the right direction.  The only thing left to do is email Obama, and Congress.  The pickensplan.com even lets you do that!

So the question is what's the down side?

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Nathan Shetterley (nathan.shetterley@gmail.com)
EVO New Media Director

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