State of the Union Address Light on Energy Issues
President Obama’s State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday night held no surprises about energy issues.
The word “energy” only appeared twice in the president’s speech—once in mention of the nation’s “booming energy production” and once with regard to how we produce and use energy. The word “power” came up twice with respect to the energy sector—in both cases referring to renewable power: “America is number one in wind power. Every three weeks, we bring online as much solar power as we did in all of 2008.” However, the president also addressed energy costs in saying, “And thanks to lower gas prices and higher fuel standards, the typical family this year should save $750 at the pump.”
Obama’s longest comments of interest to the energy sector were in the context of climate change, and they implicitly supported the goals of the administration’s Clean Power Plan, whose final rule is expected this summer:
And no challenge—no challenge—poses a greater threat to future generations than climate change.
2014 was the planet’s warmest year on record. Now, one year doesn’t make a trend, but this does—14 of the 15 warmest years on record have all fallen in the first 15 years of this century.
I’ve heard some folks try to dodge the evidence by saying they’re not scientists; that we don’t have enough information to act. Well, I’m not a scientist, either. But you know what—I know a lot of really good scientists at NASA, and NOAA, and at our major universities. The best scientists in the world are all telling us that our activities are changing the climate, and if we do not act forcefully, we’ll continue to see rising oceans, longer, hotter heat waves, dangerous droughts and floods, and massive disruptions that can trigger greater migration, conflict, and hunger around the globe. The Pentagon says that climate change poses immediate risks to our national security. We should act like it.
That’s why, over the past six years, we’ve done more than ever before to combat climate change, from the way we produce energy, to the way we use it. That’s why we’ve set aside more public lands and waters than any administration in history. And that’s why I will not let this Congress endanger the health of our children by turning back the clock on our efforts. I am determined to make sure American leadership drives international action. In Beijing, we made an historic announcement—the United States will double the pace at which we cut carbon pollution, and China committed, for the first time, to limiting their emissions. And because the world’s two largest economies came together, other nations are now stepping up, and offering hope that, this year, the world will finally reach an agreement to protect the one planet we’ve got.
Instead of referring directly to the Keystone XL pipeline, Obama called for an array of infrastructure projects, saying, “21st century businesses need 21st century infrastructure—modern ports, stronger bridges, faster trains and the fastest internet. Democrats and Republicans used to agree on this. So let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline. Let’s pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that could create more than thirty times as many jobs per year, and make this country stronger for decades to come.”
As expected, based on recent pre-SOTU comments, the president addressed the need to take more action on the cybersecurity front: “No foreign nation, no hacker, should be able to shut down our networks, steal our trade secrets, or invade the privacy of American families, especially our kids. We are making sure our government integrates intelligence to combat cyber threats, just as we have done to combat terrorism. And tonight, I urge this Congress to finally pass the legislation we need to better meet the evolving threat of cyber-attacks, combat identity theft, and protect our children’s information. If we don’t act, we’ll leave our nation and our economy vulnerable. If we do, we can continue to protect the technologies that have unleashed untold opportunities for people around the globe.”
Although the previous Congress made some progress in advancing cybersecurity bills, industry groups have said those measures do not go far enough to ensure the security of critical infrastructure in particular. (For two special reports on recent industrial control system cybersecurity issues, see the forthcoming February issue of POWER or at powermag.com.)
The real signal of energy policy priorities will come when the president submits a budget to Congress in the coming weeks and Congress decides how to respond.
—Gail Reitenbach, PhD, editor (@GailReit, @POWERmagazine)