Newsmotion - Energy and Environment

A Stronger and Sustainable Military for the 21st Century

feed — Fri, 17 May 2013 21:50:07 +0000

A Stronger and Sustainable Military for the 21st Century

Fri, 05/17/2013

As the single largest consumer of energy in the United States, the Department of Defense (DOD) knows that improving efficiency and harnessing new energy technologies is imperative – not only to achieve significant cost savings, but to give our troops better energy options on the battlefield, at sea, in the air, and at home.

At DOD’s fixed installations alone – including, barracks, offices, and hospitals – energy bills come in around $4 billion each year. Given this large footprint as well as the importance of safe, secure, and affordable energy sources to mission readiness, the Department has made one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history, by developing a goal to deploy three gigawatts of renewable energy – including solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal – on Army, Navy, and Air Force installations by 2025 – enough to power 750,000 homes.

When it comes specifically to solar power, a new report today from the Solar Energy Industries Association underscores the progress that DOD is making towards its goals.

“Enlisting the Sun: Powering the U.S. Military with Solar Energy” highlights solar energy’s growing role in powering military installations and military homes across America. According to the report, as of early 2013, there are more than 130 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy systems powering Navy, Army, and Air Force bases in at least 31 states and the District of Columbia. Combined, these installations provide enough clean energy to power more than 20,000 American homes.

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/05/17/stronger-and-sustainable-military-21st...

National Strategy for the Arctic Region Announced

feed — Fri, 10 May 2013 21:41:49 +0000

National Strategy for the Arctic Region Announced

Fri, 05/10/2013

The Arctic is rapidly changing. While the Arctic region has experienced warming and cooling cycles over millennia, the current warming trend is unlike anything previously recorded. As sea ice diminishes, ocean resources are more readily accessible. This accessibility, along with recent scientific estimates indicating the presence of significant energy and other resources, have inspired strong interest for new commercial initiatives in the region, including energy production, increased shipping, scientific research, tourism, and related infrastructure development. As an Arctic nation, the United States must be proactive and disciplined in addressing changing regional conditions and in developing adaptive strategies to protect its interests. An undisciplined approach to exploring new opportunities in this frontier could result in significant harm to the region, to our national security interests, and to the global good.

Today, we are releasing the National Strategy for the Arctic Region. Through this strategy, we are setting the United States Government’s strategic priorities for the Arctic region. These priorities are intended to position the United States to respond effectively to emerging opportunities – while simultaneously pursuing efforts to protect and conserve this unique environment.

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/05/10/national-strategy-arctic-region-announ...

Celebrate National Park Week!

feed — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:34:49 +0000

Celebrate National Park Week!

Mon, 04/22/2013

Click here to see the photo gallery.

Saturday, April 20th was the first day of National Park Week – an annual tradition celebrating, enjoying and giving back to our country’s great natural and cultural landscapes. For the next five days, parks across the country will waive their entrance fees to provide free access to thousands of miles of trails and coastlines, as well as battlefields, archeological sites and waterways. With spring now in full swing, National Park Week is a great opportunity to dust off your bicycle or sneakers, grab some healthy snacks and a water bottle and get moving outside.

You don’t have to be an outdoor expert or live near an iconic park to enjoy the broad network of national parks across the country. Some of the most treasured and well-used parks are located in and around America’s major cities, including San Francisco, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, St. Louis, Miami, San Antonio, Baltimore – and right here in Washington, D.C.

If you don’t have a national park in your city or town, chances are the National Park Service has played a role in increasing access to outdoor recreational opportunities in your community. Through the Land & Water Conservation Fund, the National Park Service has funded recreational facilities, such as playgrounds and trails, in 99 percent of counties across America.

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/04/22/celebrate-national-park-week

President Obama Establishes Five New National Monuments

feed — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 20:35:32 +0000

President Obama Establishes Five New National Monuments

Mon, 03/25/2013

Click here to see the photo gallery.

Today, President Obama signed proclamations establishing five new national monuments that celebrate our nation’s rich history and natural heritage. The monuments, located in Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Ohio and Washington, help tell the story of significant people and extraordinary events in American history, and also help protect natural resources and supporting economic growth in local communities through tourism and outdoor recreation.

“These sites honor the pioneering heroes, spectacular landscapes and rich history that have shaped our extraordinary country,” President Obama said. “By designating these national monuments today, we will ensure they will continue to inspire and be enjoyed by generations of Americans to come.”

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/03/25/president-obama-establishes-five-new-n...

Weekly Address: Time to Create the Energy Security Trust

feed — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 09:30:00 +0000

Weekly Address: Time to Create the Energy Security Trust

Sat, 03/16/2013

President Obama discusses the need to harness American energy in order to reduce our dependence on oil and make the United States a magnet for new jobs. He highlights his all-of-the-above approach to American energy -- including a proposal to establish an Energy Security Trust, which invests in research that will help shift our cars and trucks off of oil.

Transcript | Download mp4 | Download mp3

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/03/16/weekly-address-time-create-energy-secu...

President Obama Visits the Argonne National Research Lab to Talk About American Energy Security

feed — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 20:57:03 +0000

President Obama Visits the Argonne National Research Lab to Talk About American Energy Security

Fri, 03/15/2013

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on clean energy at Argonne National Laboratory’s Nanoscale Materials Center in Lemont, Ill., March 15, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Few areas hold more promise for creating good jobs and growing our economy than how we use American energy, and today President Obama visited the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois to talk about the progress we are seeing from his all of the above approach to energy independence and the risk that this important sector faces from the arbitrary cuts being imposed by the so-called sequester.

As President Obama noted in his remarks, these cuts do not distinguish between wasteful programs and vital investments. "They don’t trim the fat; they cut into muscle and into bone," the President said. "Like research and development being done right here that not only gives a great place for young researchers to come and ply their trade, but also ends up creating all kinds of spinoffs that create good jobs and good wages."

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/03/15/president-obama-visits-argonne-nationa...

What You Need to Know About the Energy Security Trust

feed — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 15:35:27 +0000

What You Need to Know About the Energy Security Trust

Fri, 03/15/2013

America’s scientists are a national treasure. Every day, idea by idea, innovation by innovation, they are developing new technology that will help secure our energy future. If we want to keep moving forward, we need scientists to keep inventing and innovating, to keep unlocking new solutions and pushing new breakthroughs.

In his 2013 State of the Union address, President Obama called on Congress to create an Energy Security Trust Fund, which would free American families and business from painful spikes in gas prices. The President’s plan builds on an idea that has bipartisan support from experts including retired admirals and generals and leading CEOs, and it focuses on one goal: shifting America’s cars and trucks off oil entirely.

So how does it work? The Energy Security Trust will invest in research that will make future technologies cheaper and better – it will fund the advances that will allow us to run cars and trucks on electricity or homegrown fuels, and on the technology that will enable us to drive from coast-to-coast without a drop of oil.

Over 10 years, the Energy Security Trust will provide $2 billion for critical, cutting-edge research focused on developing cost-effective transportation alternatives.The funding will be provided by revenues from federal oil and gas development, and will not add any additional costs to the federal budget. The investments will support research into a range of technologies – things like advanced vehicles that run on electricity, homegrown biofuels, and domestically produced natural gas. It will also help fund a small number of real-world experiments that try different transportation techniques in cities and towns around the country using advanced vehicles at scale.

In each of the last four years, domestic production of oil and gas has gone up and our use of foreign oil has gone down. And while America uses less foreign oil now than we’ve used in almost two decades, there’s more work to do. That’s why we need to keep reaching for greater energy security. And that’s why we must keep developing new energy supplies and new technologies that use less oil. The Secure Energy Trust will ensure American scientists and research labs have the support they need to keep our country competitve and create the jobs of the future.

See the graphic full sized

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/03/15/what-you-need-know-about-energy-securi...

President Obama Announces Three Nominees to Help Tackle "Our Most Important Challenges"

feed — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 18:26:45 +0000

President Obama Announces Three Nominees to Help Tackle "Our Most Important Challenges"

Mon, 03/04/2013

President Barack Obama announces the nominations of, from left, Ernest Moniz as Energy Secretary, Gina McCarthy as Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, and Sylvia Mathews Burwell as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in the East Room of the White House, March 4, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Today, President Obama announced his nominees for director of the Office of Management and Budget, Secretary of Energy and administrator of the EPA.

Sylvia Matthews Burwell, the President's pick for Office of Management and Budget Director, is an expert on budgetary and domestic policy. She served as Deputy Director of the OMB from 1998 to 2001, as well as Deputy Chief of Staff to the President and Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Treasury during the Clinton administration.

President Obama said that Burwell "understands that our goal when we put together a budget is not just to make the numbers add up. Our goal is also to reignite the true engine of economic growth in this country, and that is a strong and growing middle class -- to offer ladders of opportunity for anybody willing to climb them."

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/03/04/president-obama-announces-three-nomine...

Reducing Pollution For All American Families

feed — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 16:00:57 +0000

Reducing Pollution For All American Families

Thu, 02/14/2013

When I first became Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, I made a list of my priorities for the Agency. Working for environmental justice was at the top of that list. Ensuring equal environmental protections for all Americans is the unfinished business of the environmental movement.

It’s a simple idea – that all Americans are entitled to clean air to breathe, safe water to drink and a healthy community to raise their families – but often, it is America’s low-income and minority communities that bear the brunt of our country’s pollution.

As a result, these communities are also hit harder by the many illnesses pollution is linked to – conditions like asthma, heart disease, cancer and strokes. Studies show that minority groups face a greater risk of having asthma, and once they have it, they are at a greater risk of needing emergency treatment. African-American children are hospitalized for asthma at twice the rate of white children, and asthma-related deaths among African-American children take place at a rate of four times that of non-Hispanic white children. Hispanic children -- especially of Puerto Rican descent -- also face higher rates of asthma.

Dirty air, polluted water and contaminated lands not only put families at higher risks of serious and potentially costly diseases – they also discourage new developments and new jobs. Poison in the ground often means poison in the economy. Limiting the economic possibilities of low-income and minority communities only makes it harder to break the cycle of poverty.

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/02/14/reducing-pollution-all-american-famili...

Open for Questions: The State of the Union and Energy and the Environment

feed — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:47 +0000

Open for Questions: The State of the Union and Energy and the Environment

Wed, 02/13/2013

Today, Heather Zichal, Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change, answered questions from the public about President Obama's State of the Union Address in an “Open for Questions” session moderated by Popular Science. Check it out below.

Story URL:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/02/13/open-questions-state-union-and-energy-...