We’re installing solar panels on the White House, building the largest solar energy power plant in the world on our public lands, and proposing the first-ever greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for heavy-duty cars and trucks.  All told, the Administration held and made over 140 energy-related events and announcements this month.  Below are just a few of the highlights, but you can see the full calendar of events here.

• Solar Power and the Clean Energy Economy. President Obama kicked off the month by highlighting a revolutionary new solar power plant in California that will employ 1,000 people and power nearly 140,000 homes.  The plant is possible because of the President’s investments in the clean energy economy.
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• Empowering Defense through Energy Security. The Department of Defense and the Navy hosted events to discuss how they can turn their energy use from a strategic and operationalliability to a key strength for the men and women of our armed forces.
• Solar Panels on the White House. At the Green Gov Symposium in Washington, DC, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley announced that solar panels and a solar water heater will be installed on the roof of the White House residence this spring.
• Cleaner Trucks, Buses and Vans. The Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency announced the first-ever proposed national standards for greenhouse gas emissions and fuel efficiency for heavy-duty trucks, vans and buses. 
• Ramping Up Solar Power on Public Lands.  In October, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced a series of six new solar power projects on public lands including the first-ever solar power plant on public lands and the largest solar power plant in the world.
• You Asked, Chu Answered. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu answers your questions on making your home more energy efficient.
  
• 36 Billion Gallons of Biofuels. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack outlined the steps USDA will take to reach a national goal of producing 36 billion gallons of biofuel a year in the United States by 2022, with 21 billion gallons coming from advanced biofuel production.
• Building More Sustainable Communities. The Department of Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Housing and Urban Development joined forces to support communities who are providing Americans more housing choices, make transportation systems more efficient and reliable, and support vibrant neighborhoods that attract businesses.  This is good for our communities, our environment and our economy.
• Preparing for and Responding to Climate Change. The Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force released a report with recommendations that will help strengthen the Nation’s capacity to prepare for and respond to the risks associated with climate change. 
• Historic Investments in High Speed Rail. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that 54 high-speed rail projects in 23 states will receive a combined total of $2.4 billion to continue developing America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service.  These investments will ease our reliance on foreign oil and reduce our nation’s carbon pollution.

Since taking office, President Obama and his Administration have invested over $90 billion in clean energy technology through the Recovery Act, advanced new fuel-economy and greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars, light trucks and heavy duty trucks, and lead by example by cutting the federal government’s own carbon footprint.  But there is still much work to be done.  We will continue to invest in clean energy technologies and energy efficiency to create jobs and compete in the global marketplace.

Since taking office, President Obama and his Administration have taken unprecedented steps to build a clean energy economy in this country.  We’ve invested over $90 billion in clean energy technology through the Recovery Act.  We worked with the automotive industry and the environmental community to set new tough new fuel-economy standards and the first-ever greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and light trucks. And the federal government itself -- one of the largest consumers of energy in the country, is leading by example by cutting its carbon footprint and finding creative ways to go green. 

While we have made important progress in building a clean energy economy in this country, there is still much more work to be done.  We must continue to invest in the wind, solar, biofuels, clean coal and other clean energy technologies as well as energy efficiency to create jobs of the future and compete in the global marketplace.  And we must redouble our efforts to pass comprehensive energy legislation that reduces our dependence on foreign oil, creates a new generation of homegrown clean energy jobs, and cuts pollution to reduce the risks posed by climate change.

Learn more about President Obama‘s commitment to making our nation the leader in the clean energy economy and take a look at some of the National Energy Awareness Month events coming up in the next week.  To learn more about these events, check out the calendar.

Friday, October 1

• Environmental Protection Agency - Methane to Markets Partners
• Department of Energy - Thorlabs Facility Groundbreaking
• Department of Energy  - Energy and Climate Symposium at UC Berkeley

Monday, October 4

• Department of Energy  - National Academy of Engineering Annual Meeting
• Department of Energy  - Meeting Global Energy Demand
• Department of Energy  - UDC-National Society of Black Engineers Week

Tuesday October 5

• Council on Environmental Quality - Green Gov Symposium
• Department of Energy  - Technology Policy Forum: The Smart Grid Promise
• Department of Energy  - Science Breakfast of the Science Diplomat Club
• Department of Energy - UDC-National Society of Black Engineers Week
• Department of the Interior - Atlantic Wind Energy Assoc. Conference
• Department of the Interior  - The Energy Daily's Transmission Sting Summit
• Department of Housing and Urban Development - Governor's Conference on Housing and Sustainable Communities

Wednesday October 6

• Council on Environmental Quality - Green Gov Symposium
• Department of Energy  - Business Council for Sustainable Energy Annual Meeting
• Department of Energy  - UDC-National Society of Black Engineers Week

Thursday October 7

• Council on Environmental Quality - Green Gov Symposium
• Council on Environmental Quality  - GreenGov Awards Ceremony
• Department of Energy  - Purdue Hawkins lecture
• Department of Energy  - Great Minds in STEM Conference
• Department of Energy  - UDC-National Society of Black Engineers Week

Friday October 8

• Department of Energy  - Estar Award Presentation
• Department of Energy  - Engineers for a Sustainable World conference
• Department of Energy  - Great Minds in STEM Conference
• Department of Energy  - UDC-National Society of Black Engineers Week
• Environmental Protection Agency  - Utah Energy Star Summit
• Environmental Protection Agency  - Change the World, Start with Energy Star™ Campaign Exhibit House

President Obama has asked me to spend some time answering your questions directly, so tomorrow at 12:30 PM EDT, I will be hosting a live chat.  You can watch the chat live on WhiteHouse.gov/live, and you can submit your questions in advance via Facebook, Twitter or our webform. 

From day one our focus has been capping the leak, containing and cleaning up the oil that has spilled, and restoring the lives and livelihoods of the people in the Gulf Coast region. You can track our response efforts and find additional information and resources on the on the ongoing government-wide response here.

Carol Browner is Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change.

The President has been clear from the beginning: his Administration will not rest until the leak is contained and cleaned up and we will aggressively pursue full compensation for damages from BP and other responsible parties. That is why, this morning, the President sent a legislative package to Congress that will enable the BP Oil Spill response to continue expeditiously, speed assistance to people affected by this spill, and strengthen and update the oil spill liability system to better address catastrophic events. And while the President’s proposal will ask for additional funds in some cases, the federal government will not relent in pursuing full compensation for the expenses it has incurred, and for damage caused by the spill.

The Gulf Coast is one of our planet’s richest and most precious ecosystems. Its richness comes not just from its economic importance, but also its refuge to this nation’s natural wealth – our coral reefs, seashores, and unique wildlife that have drawn millions of tourists to the region and supported a vibrant commercial and recreational fishery over generations. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect this treasure, to rebuild what has been destroyed, and to seek compensation from those responsible.

To learn more about the President’s proposed legislation, please visit this site:

• Fact Sheet: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Legislative Package

Carol Browner is Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change

Tuesday, the President visited a Siemens Wind Blade Turbine Manufacturing Plant in Fort Madison, Iowa. He spoke of how just a few years ago, the plant was silent and empty, a possibility yet unfulfilled. Yet now, thanks to a $3.5 million 48c tax credit funded by the Recovery Act, it employs more than 600 people, two-thirds of whom were previously without work. In addition, it supports 350 more jobs throughout Lee County, employing everyone from electricians to grocers.

After traveling throughout Iowa, touring a farm and holding a town hall meeting at a Community College, on Wednesday the President headed to Macon, Missouri. Macon is home to the POET Biorefinery, a plant that produces ethanol from crops grown right here in the United States.

Families in Macon and Fort Madison, like many others across this nation, know all-too-well the hardships of this recession. But these towns, and many others across the country, are getting back to their feet – and we are doing all we can to help. Last year we made the largest investment in the clean energy economy in our nation’s history, which is expected to create more than 700,000 jobs by the end of 2012. These are jobs not just in providing the parts and technology to create power from the wind or fuels from the land, but in manufacturing solar panels, in building the wires and mechanics behind our smart meters, in creating next generation batteries – the list goes on.

Other nations realize that the country that leads the clean energy economy will be the country that leads the 21st century global economy. The President is dedicated to making the United States that country – and is inspired by the small towns across rural America that provide the backbone for this effort. Towns like Macon and Fort Madison can be models around this country, and I’m confident one day we’ll look back to these places as some of the engines of this new clean energy future.

As extraordinary the work that towns like Macon and Fort Madison are doing, these plants can’t solve all our energy challenges alone. But their work is a key part of a comprehensive strategy to move us from an economy that runs on fossil fuels to one that relies on homegrown fuels and clean energy. And the President knows we can come together on this issue and pass comprehensive energy and climate legislation that will spur a new generation of clean energy industries, create good American jobs, and enhance our energy security.

Carol Browner is the Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change.

Our challenges are not insignificant: we have less than 2 percent of the world’s oil reserves, but are responsible for more than 20 percent of world consumption; we know that drilling alone cannot come close to meeting our long-term energy needs, and that for our planet and our economic security, we need to begin the transition to cleaner fuels now. Today’s announcement marks another significant step in the President’s agenda to do just that – a broader strategy, as he said, to “move us from an economy that runs on fossil fuels and foreign oil to one that relies on homegrown fuels and clean energy.”

And as part of that strategy, in addition to developing oil and gas resources in new areas, the Administration is moving forward on many fronts to boost domestic energy production, diversify America’s energy portfolio and promote clean energy innovation:

• Landmark Car and Truck Fuel Standards: On April 1st, EPA and DOT will sign a joint final rule establishing greenhouse gas emission standards and corporate average fuel economy standards for light-duty vehicles for model years 2012-2016. This measure is expected to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the life of the program.
• Leading by Example – Greening the Federal Fleet: Last year, President Obama issued Executive Order 13514 asking Federal agencies to lead by example towards a clean energy economy. And GSA and DOE are doing just that by working to turn over their fleets with cleaner, hybrid vehicles.
• Department of Defense Energy Security Strategic Emphasis: The Defense Department is actively pursuing strategic initiatives to enhance energy security and independence and reduce harmful emissions, and encouraging the development and use of domestically produced advanced biofuels, including what will be on Earth Day the first-ever flight of a fighter jet on a 50/50 biofuel blend.

President Barack Obama looks at an F-18 'Green Hornet' jet, a biofuel powered fighter jet, following remarks on energy security at Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility, March 31, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Today, as then-Senator Obama did on the campaign trail, the President highlighted the importance of laying a comprehensive new foundation in energy security – not just the easy choices, but the tough ones too – that will help us to achieve energy independence. Today’s decision reflected those tough choices: a year’s worth of conversations, a public comment process at the Department of Interior that yielded more than 500,000 public comments, and an ever-present emphasis on sound science, robust environmental protection and permitting, and a set of balanced approaches, including boosting our development of renewable, homegrown fuels that will ultimately put our nation in a position to lead the world in the race for clean energy and economic security.

If you’d like to learn more on the specifics of today’s outer continental shelf announcement, please find detailed information from the Department of Interior.

Carol Browner is Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate

The investment tax credits, worth up to thirty percent of each planned project, will leverage private capital for a total investment of nearly $7.7 billion in high-tech manufacturing in the United States.

One hundred eighty three projects in 43 states will create tens of thousands of high quality clean energy jobs and the domestic manufacturing of advanced clean energy technologies including solar, wind and efficiency and energy management technologies.

As the President has stated before, the country that leads the way in harnessing clean, renewable energy will lead the 21st century. It’s no surprise that countries around the world are taking charge in this effort. China is making record investments in energy efficiency. American innovation pioneered solar technology, but we’ve fallen behind countries like Germany and Japan in producing it. 

The United States once led the way on these technologies.  And because of steps like the one we’re taking today, the U.S. can lead again: we’re beginning to produce more of the batteries we use to power our hybrid cards and trucks at home; once-shuttered factories are beginning to spring back to life manufacturing materials that make our buildings and homes more efficient; and in 2008 we generated more total wind power than any other nation on Earth.

This is only the beginning and the global competition is fierce.

Programs like the Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits reveal the immense power of American innovation and ingenuity to create good jobs, and the vibrant workforce that has carried our nation to great heights before. This particular program in the Recovery Act was oversubscribed by a ratio of more than 3 to 1, reflecting a deep pipeline of high quality clean energy manufacturing opportunities in America. That is why President Obama has already called on Congress to provide an additional $5 billion to expand the program.

The President knows that these are the companies that will lead the 21st century and help America take control of our energy future to build a more secure, energy independent and prosperous nation.

Check out the map below to see where many of the tomorrow’s clean energy jobs will be created:

Carol Browner is Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate