Energy, Climate Change,
and Our Environment

The President has taken unprecedented action to build the foundation for a clean energy economy, tackle the issue of climate change, and protect our environment.

Energy and Environment Latest News

  • American Tradition and Rural Innovation at the Wisconsin State Fair

    Posted by Administrator Lisa P. Jackson on August 12, 2010 at 11:16 AM EDT

    Last week I took part in an American tradition: visiting the Wisconsin State Fair. The Wisconsin State Fair and state fairs throughout the country are a cherished summertime experience for rural America - a place where old friends and old traditions go hand-in-hand with the latest innovations. In a solar powered building, I sampled my first cheese curds. I visited Senator Herb Kohl's family's flavored milk stand and had some of the Fair's famous cream puffs. And I saw the Fair's "solar panel on a stick" - a rotating solar panel that follows the sun - an investment that has already paid for itself in utility savings.

    Something else was on display as well: the value that our great outdoors and green spaces have for millions of Americans. The environment is the foundation of the economy for the farmers and ranchers I met at the fair, the people who live off the land. It's part of the culture for the women and men who love to fish and hunt. And it's a way of life for the 60 million Americans living in small towns and rural areas throughout the country. Though they may not call themselves "environmentalists," these Americans are playing an important part in protecting critical natural resources, using sustainable techniques to preserve our environment, and leading the way in innovative clean energy technology.

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  • West Wing Week: "Dispatches from the Gulf"

    Posted by Julia Simmons on August 6, 2010 at 12:00 AM EDT

     Welcome to a special Gulf Coast episode of West Wing Week. We spent this week traveling through communities on America’s Gulf Coast to give you a special behind the scenes look at the federal government’s historic and unprecedented effort to contain and clean up after the Deepwater BP oil spill.

    Join responders as they skim sheen off the ocean and respond to oiled wildlife. Stop by a town hall with Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, as he hears the concerns of locals. Join engineers as they pump mud into the well itself, creating a more permanent seal and much more.

    Find more video, photos, and information on the events featured in this episode below:

    Tuesday, August 3, 2010

    Wednesday, August 4, 2010

     

    Arun Chaudhary is the official White House videographer 

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  • New Report: 74% of Oil in BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill has been Contained or Mitigated

    Posted by Heather Zichal on August 4, 2010 at 5:59 PM EDT

    Today, a panel of government scientists released a report which said that the vast majority of the oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill has either evaporated or been burned, skimmed, recovered from the wellhead or dispersed much of which is in the process of being degraded. A significant amount of this is the direct result of the federal government’s aggressive response to the spill.

    The chart below outlines the breakdown of what has happened to the oil released into the Gulf of Mexico since the oil spill began in April:

    Oil Budget Chart

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  • How the Recovery Act is Affecting Small Business Innovation

    Posted by Kristina M. Johnson on August 2, 2010 at 6:35 PM EDT

    Cross posted from the Energy Blog.

    We invest in our country’s small businesses because small businesses invest back in our economy. With small businesses creating nearly two out of every three net new jobs, you probably have a friend, neighbor or family member who makes their livelihood by working for a small business. These employees enter an environment that supports innovation and ingenuity, as small businesses invest in research and new programs to spur economic growth and reduce our country’s energy usage.

    Last week, I wrote about our Phase III awards, $30 million in funding available to be awarded to help qualified small businesses bring their ideas to the marketplace. Today, we are showcasing the results of our Phase II awards -- over 200 awards totaling $188 million have been awarded to qualified small businesses in 34 states. These awards will be used to develop clean energy technologies that have the potential to be commercialized, thus continuing to allow the small businesses to create new jobs in their communities. These awards will provide funding at a key stage in the technology development cycle, helping innovators develop prototype technologies that can then be manufactured, creating clean energy jobs and economic opportunity.

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  • The Recovery Act: Laying the Foundation for America’s 21st Century Clean Energy Economy

    Posted by Secretary Shaun Donovan on August 2, 2010 at 9:09 AM EDT

    Last week, I spoke at two events that helped underscore the extent to which President Obama’s Recovery Act is paving the way for a clean energy economy.

    Before an audience of green affordable housing developers at the Communities of the Institute for Professional and Executive Development (IPED) annual conference, I highlighted four ways HUD is using the lessons of the Recovery Act to make this possible—first, by upgrading and retrofitting 230,000 units of HUD’s affordable housing stock to high green standards by the end of this summer; second, by providing new tools to property owners that demonstrate which green improvements they can make and the savings they can generate; third, by using the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to catalyze new forms of green retrofit financing for single- and multi-family housing; and fourth, by forging interagency partnerships across government to weatherize homes and help clusters of communities work together to reduce the combined cost of housing and transportation.  

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  • A Discussion on Environmental Justice

    Posted by Nancy Sutley on July 30, 2010 at 10:38 AM EDT

    Wednesday morning I had the opportunity to speak at the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council's (NEJAC) public meeting in Washington, D.C. and discuss the most pressing issues we face as a country when it comes to environmental justice. NEJAC provides important advice as we work to ensure that all American communities have equal environmental protections.

    Too often pollution and environmental degradation fall disproportionately on low-income and minority residents. Every parent deserves to know that their child can play outside at recess without getting asthma from dirty air and Americans should know their neighborhoods are clean and healthy.

    In the Obama Administration, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson is leading this issue as we work to ensure that all Americans have clean air and water, and access to parks and other green space, cost-saving clean energy programs, and emerging job opportunities in the clean energy sector. This country was built on the promise of equal opportunity for all of us.  We are committed to keeping that promise.

    Nancy Sutley is the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality

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