Governors try to advance clean energy many ways amid tight budgets and economic downturn

BYLINE: By ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS, Associated Press Writer

Governors who want clean energy to be a national priority are trying to bring together states with wildly different ways of producing power, like tapping ocean temperature differences off Hawaii and mining coal in West Virginia.

But a souring economy has tightened state budgets and forced spending cuts that could temporarily short circuit renewable energy development.

Twenty states now project budget gaps, which together total $34 billion for 2009.

The National Governors Association launched its "Securing a Clean Energy Future" initiative in December and will reintroduce the plan this weekend at its winter meeting in Washington, D.C. The plan emphasizes promoting renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The same meeting includes a panel discussion Sunday titled "Traditional Domestic Energy in a Clean Energy Future."

The association's clean energy initiative provides flexibility for states to craft a plan that works for them, said Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, the association chairman.

"Coal states can work toward developing advanced clean coal technologies," Pawlenty said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "States with significant wind or crops that can be used for fuel, like ethanol or other biofuels, are tapping into those resources."

Pawlenty has embraced renewable fuels, conservation and a requirement to cut global warming emissions in Minnesota by 80 percent by mid-century.

He also supports clean coal technology and coal-burning power plants where carbon is captured and sequestered.

Pawlenty said the national association has worked closely with governor's offices around the country to bring states together on the issue.

"Although there are certainly differences in how each state approaches energy policy, there is consensus that more needs to be done to create a cleaner, more secure and more independent energy future," he said.

Some coal states say coal gets a bad rap even as it remains a viable power source.

"Anybody can talk and beat up coal: They don't like it; it's dirty; it does this and this," said West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, a Democrat and chairman of the association's natural resources committee. "But I can assure you, they're not going to turn their lights or their demand for energy off."

A greenhouse gas accord signed by 10 Midwest governors in November referred to the region's renewable energy resources like wind, solar and ethanol.

But it also emphasized the region's "extensive and secure coal reserves, combined with extensive geologic reservoirs for storing carbon dioxide."

In Ohio, facing a budget shortfall of at least $733 million by June 2009, Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland has proposed a stimulus package that includes spending $250 million on alternative energy sources such as solar, wind and clean coal.

"If states like Ohio want to overcome their economic challenges, they've got to embrace advanced energy technologies and renewable sources," Strickland said Thursday. "This idea of clean, green energy is no longer a tie-dyed T-shirt kind of idea. This is mainstream economics."

States will push strategies that depend on their own situations, said Steve Clemmer, research director for the Union of Concerned Scientists clean energy program.

"Where the tension is going to come from is the allocation of resources that go toward the various solutions," he said. "Which solutions are going to get more emphasis will vary depending on the state."

Last month, Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle proposed a new state agency to develop business ventures in renewable energy, that could be based on wind, ocean thermal differences and even algae. Today, Hawaii is the most oil-dependent state in the country.

In his State of the State speech, South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds proposed new incentives to increase biodiesel production with a side benefit of helping the state's soy bean farmers. But Rounds also promoted a new oil refinery and a major new Canadian oil pipeline that would run through North and South Dakota.

"Huge supplies of renewable fuels for South Dakota and nationwide use will not happen overnight, nor will they be able to totally replace petroleum," Rounds said in his Jan. 8 speech.

Source
Associated Press
Article Type
Staff News