In his address to a joint session of Congress, President Barack Obama called on Congress to pass legislation that caps carbon dioxide emissions and said that stimulating production of renewable energy is one of three “absolutely critical” elements to the country’s long-term economic future, along with health care reform and education. “To truly transform our economy, protect our security, and save our planet from the ravages of climate change, we need to ultimately make clean, renewable energy the profitable kind of energy,” said Obama. “So I ask this Congress to send me legislation that places a market-based cap on carbon pollution and drives the production of more renewable energy in America.” In laying out his long-term economic goals, he gave energy top billing, vowing to spend $15 billion a year on the development of renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, and advanced biofuels; pledging to double the production of renewable energy in the next three years; promising to invest in a new electricity grid to accommodate renewable power sources; and saying his stimulus plan would provide funds to make U.S. homes and businesses more energy efficient.
Obama Calls for Carbon Cap,Citing Renewable Energy As Top Priority
More From E360
-
INTERVIEW
How One South African Community Stopped Shell Oil in Its Tracks
-
ANALYSIS
Will New Leader End Progress in Saving Indonesia’s Forests?
-
Oceans
Dire Straits: Can a Fishing Ban Save the Elusive European Eel?
-
Climate
Scientists Are Trying to Coax the Ocean to Absorb More CO2
-
INTERVIEW
Marina Silva on Brazil’s Fight to Turn the Tide on Deforestation
-
Solutions
Solomon Islands Tribes Sell Carbon Credits, Not Their Trees
-
INTERVIEW
With Sea Turtles in Peril, a Call for New Strategies to Save Them
-
RIVERS
Jared Kushner Has Big Plans for Delta of Europe’s Last Wild River
-
Energy
A Nuclear Power Revival Is Sparking a Surge in Uranium Mining
-
OPINION
Despite Official Vote, the Evidence of the Anthropocene Is Clear
-
INTERVIEW
At 11,500 Feet, a ‘Climate Fast’ to Save the Melting Himalaya
-
Oceans
Octopuses Are Highly Intelligent. Should They Be Farmed for Food?