Remarks by the President on Energy in Lanham, Maryland

IBEW Local 26, Lanham, Maryland

11:05 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  Please have a seat.  Have a seat.  Good morning, everybody.  Before I begin let me just acknowledge some of the people who are standing behind me here:  First of all, two people who have been working really hard to make this day happen -- Secretary Steven Chu, my Energy Secretary -- Steven Chu.  (Applause.)  And my White House advisor on everything having to do with energy, Carol Browner.  (Applause.)

I want to acknowledge the outstanding governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley, as well as his lieutenant governor, Anthony Brown.  (Applause.)  We've got Mark Ayers from the building trades, and Billy Hite from the UA Plumbers and Pipefitters -- give them a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  Gregory Jaczko, who's with the Nuclear Energy Commission, is here.  Where is he? (Applause.)  Ed Hill, president of IBEW International.  (Applause.)  And I want to thank Chuck Graham and everybody here at Local 26 for their great hospitality.  (Applause.)

Thank you for the warm welcome.  Thanks for showing me around.  I was just mentioning that I got a chance to pull the first fire alarm since I was in junior high.  (Laughter.)  And I didn't get in trouble for it. 

This is an extraordinarily impressive facility, where workers are instructed on everything from the installation of sophisticated energy hardware and software to the basics of current and resistance.  We need to look no further than the workers and apprentices who are standing behind me to see the future that's possible when it comes to clean energy. 

It's a future in which skilled laborers are helping us lead in burgeoning industries.  It's a future in which renewable electricity is fueling plug-in hybrid cars and energy-efficient homes and businesses.  It's a future in which we're exporting homegrown energy technology instead of importing foreign oil.  And it's a future in which our economy is powered not by what we borrow and spend but what we invent and what we build.

That's the bright future that lies ahead for America.  And it's one of -- it's a future that my administration is striving to achieve each and every day.  We've already made the largest investment in clean energy in history as part of the Recovery Act -- an investment that is expected to create more than 700,000 jobs across America -– manufacturing advanced batteries for more fuel-efficient vehicles, upgrading the power grid so that it's smarter and it's stronger, doubling our nation's capacity to generate renewable energy.  And after decades in which we have done little to increase the efficiency of cars and trucks, we've raised fuel economy standards to reduce our dependence on foreign oil while helping folks save money at the pump. 

But in order to truly harness our potential in clean energy we're going to have to do more, and that's why we're here.  In the near term, as we transition to cleaner energy sources, we're going to have to make some tough decisions about opening up new offshore areas for oil and gas development.  We'll need to make continued investments in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies, even as we build greater capacity in renewables like wind and solar.  And we're going to have to build a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in America. 

That's what brings us here.  Through the Department of Energy -– under the leadership of Nobel prize-winning physicist, Steven Chu –- although, just a quick side note:  When he was talking to some of the instructors here, and they were talking about currents and this and that and the other, I indicated to him that he could have saved a lot of money.  Instead of getting a Ph.D., he could have come here and learned some of the same stuff.  (Laughter and applause.)  You know, the instructors here were just keeping up -- they were right there with him. 

But through the Department of Energy and Secretary Chu's leadership, we are announcing roughly $8 billion in loan guarantees to break ground on the first new nuclear plant in our country in three decades -- the first new nuclear power plant in nearly three decades.  (Applause.) 

It's a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs in the next few years, and some 800 permanent jobs -- well-paying permanent jobs -- in the years to come.  And this is only the beginning.  My budget proposes tripling the loan guarantees we provide to help finance safe, clean nuclear facilities -– and we'll continue to provide financing for clean energy projects here in Maryland and across America.

Now, there will be those that welcome this announcement, those who think it's been long overdue.  But there are also going to be those who strongly disagree with this announcement.  The same has been true in other areas of our energy debate, from offshore drilling to putting a price on carbon pollution.  But what I want to emphasize is this:  Even when we have differences, we cannot allow those differences to prevent us from making progress.  On an issue that affects our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, we can’t keep on being mired in the same old stale debates between the left and the right, between environmentalists and entrepreneurs.

See, our competitors are racing to create jobs and command growing energy industries.  And nuclear energy is no exception.  Japan and France have long invested heavily in this industry.  Meanwhile, there are 56 nuclear reactors under construction around the world:  21 in China alone; six in South Korea; five in India.  And the commitment of these countries is not just generating the jobs in those plants; it's generating demand for expertise and new technologies. 

So make no mistake:  Whether it’s nuclear energy, or solar or wind energy, if we fail to invest in the technologies of tomorrow, then we’re going to be importing those technologies instead of exporting them.  We will fall behind.  Jobs will be produced overseas, instead of here in the United States of America.  And that's not a future that I accept.

Now, I know it’s been long assumed that those who champion the environment are opposed to nuclear power.  But the fact is, even though we’ve not broken ground on a new power plant -- new nuclear plant in 30 years, nuclear energy remains our largest source of fuel that produces no carbon emissions.  To meet our growing energy needs and prevent the worst consequences of climate change, we'll need to increase our supply of nuclear power.  It's that simple.  This one plant, for example, will cut carbon pollution by 16 million tons each year when compared to a similar coal plant.  That's like taking 3.5 million cars off the road.

On the other side, there are those who have long advocated for nuclear power -- including many Republicans -- who have to recognize that we're not going to achieve a big boost in nuclear capacity unless we also create a system of incentives to make clean energy profitable.  That's not just my personal conclusion; it's the conclusion of many in the energy industry itself, including CEOs of the nation's largest utility companies.  Energy leaders and experts recognize that as long as producing carbon pollution carries no cost, traditional plants that use fossil fuels will be more cost-effective than plants that use nuclear fuel. 

That's why we need comprehensive energy and climate legislation, and why this legislation has drawn support from across the ideological spectrum.  I raised this just last week with congressional Republican leaders.  I believe there's real common ground here.  And my administration will be working to build on areas of agreement so that we can pass a bipartisan energy and climate bill through the Senate.

Now, none of this is to say that there aren't some serious drawbacks with respect to nuclear energy that have to be addressed.  As the CEOs standing behind me will tell you, nuclear power generates waste, and we need to accelerate our efforts to find ways of storing this waste safely and disposing of it.  That's why we've asked a bipartisan group of leaders and nuclear experts to examine this challenge.  And these plants also have to be held to the highest and strictest safety standards to answer the legitimate concerns of Americans who live near and far from these facilities.  That's going to be an imperative. 

But investing in nuclear energy remains a necessary step.  What I hope is that with this announcement, we're underscoring both our seriousness in meeting the energy challenge and our willingness to look at this challenge not as a partisan issue but as a matter that's far more important than politics -- because the choices we make will affect not just the next generation but many generations to come.

The fact is changing the ways we produce and use energy requires us to think anew; it requires us to act anew; and it demands of us a willingness to extend our hand across some of the old divides, to act in good faith, and to move beyond the broken politics of the past.  That's what we must do; that's what we will do.

Thank you very much, everybody.  Appreciate it.  (Applause.)

END
11:15 A.M. EST

Remarks by The President and The Vice President at Meeting with Governors on Energy Policy

State Dining Room

2:06 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, listen, I just want to personally welcome all the governors who are here today.  As I said at the State of the Union last week, I am convinced that whoever builds a clean energy economy, whoever is at the forefront of that, is going to own the 21st century global economy.  Last year, we made the largest investment in clean energy in our history.  It's an investment that's already leading to new jobs and new businesses across the country.  You've got solar panel production in California.  You got advanced batteries in North Carolina.  Every state is starting to take advantage of a lot of what's already been done.

But if anybody read the story in The New York Times last Sunday, countries like China are moving even faster.  And they're very aggressive about wanting to make sure that these clean energy jobs are in their countries.  As I said at the State of the Union, I'm not going to settle for a situation where the United States comes in second place or third place or fourth place in what will be the most important economic engine in the future.

Now, there's no reason that we shouldn't be able to work together in a bipartisan way to get this done.  I know that there is some concern about how energy fits together with climate change.  I happen to believe that climate change is one of the reasons why we've got to pursue a clean energy agenda, but it's not the only reason.  So even if you don't believe in the severity of climate change, as I do, you still should want to pursue this agenda.  It's good for our national security and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.  It's good for our economy because it will produce jobs.

We can't afford to spin our wheels while the rest of the world speeds ahead.  And that's why I've asked these governors -- leaders in their own right and their states around energy issues, Democrats and Republicans –- to meet here today so that we can work through some of these challenges and opportunities that are presented by the transition to a clean energy economy.

I want to be clear that my administration is following a non-ideological approach to this issue.  We believe in a strategy of more production, more efficiency, and more incentives for clean energy.  We're willing to make some tough decisions on issues like offshore drilling, so long as we protect coastlines and communities.  We are moving forward on a new generation of nuclear power plants, although we want to make sure that they are safe and secure.

One of the things that we're going to be talking about today is investing in the kind of technology that will allow us to use coal, our most bountiful natural resource here in the United States, without polluting our planet.

It's been said that the United States is the Saudi Arabia of coal –- and that's because, as I said, it's one of our most abundant energy resources.  If we can develop the technology to capture the carbon pollution released by coal, it can create jobs and provide energy well into the future.  So today I'm announcing a Carbon Capture and Storage Task Force that will be charged with the goal of figuring out how we can deploy affordable clean coal technology on a widespread scale within 10 years.  And we want to get up 10 commercial demonstration projects, get those up and running by 2016.

We're also going to be talking about some developments we're making on biofuels, so that more folks can start filling up their cars and trucks with cleaner, American-grown fuels.  By 2022, we will more than double the amount of biofuels we produce to 36 billion gallons, which will decrease our dependence on foreign oil by hundreds of millions of barrels per year.  We're also working to make sure that we can start turning things like plants and woodchips into heat, power, and biofuels, and that will create new economic opportunities for rural communities.  And our biofuels working group is releasing its first report that details the government's strategy for supporting the biofuels industry.

The bottom line is this:  I am convinced that America can win the race to build a clean energy economy, but we're going to have to overcome the weight of our own politics.  We have to focus not so much on those narrow areas where we disagree, but on the broad areas where we agree.

And I also think it's important for us to understand that in order for us to move forward with a robust energy policy, we've got to have not an either/or philosophy but a both/and philosophy -- a philosophy that says traditional sources of energy are going to continue to be important for a while so we've got to just use technologies to make them cleaner and more efficient; that we're going to have to pursue an energy-efficiency agenda across our economy.

We're going to also have to develop new sources of energy that allow us to take advantage of sun, wind, our coastlines, and in ways that over time can actually enhance our standards of living, create jobs, and also protect our environment.

That's the agenda I want to pursue.  I am confident that's the agenda that these governors want to pursue as well.  And so I'm grateful to have them here and I'm looking forward to hearing their ideas.

I should point out, obviously, that we also have our key Cabinet members here -- Steven Chu, Tom Vilsack, Ken Salazar, Lisa Jackson -- who are here as well, and Nancy Sutley at our Council of Environmental Quality, and Carol Browner, who's doing a lot of our coordination in the White House, so that we've got our top people on energy and the environment in the room to have this discussion.

Now, with that, I want to give Joe just a brief chance to speak.

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Mr. President, let me just add a few points.  By the way, welcome.  These poor guys, Mr. President, and women have had to listen to me on telephone calls on the Recovery Act over the last several months.  I thank you for your cooperation.  It's been -- I hope we've been responsive.

Well, look, the announcement you're making today, Mr. President, builds on an unprecedented investment that the federal government has made, in large part through the Recovery Act, to deal with investments in clean energy and lessen our dependence on foreign oil -- $80 billion.  That has leveraged another $70 billion, Mr. President, for a total investment of $150 billion in clean energy.  A little more than a third of that money is out the door, and it's already saved and created somewhere in the area of over 10,000 jobs, to go to your point about it's not just about the environment; this is a job creator.

That includes more than $3 billion in clean coal projects for West Virginia -- from West Virginia to Alabama, and $600 million in biofuels, which are on track now, Mr. President, will be placed in various states across the country here.

We're now on track to go from zero -- zero commercial-scale biofuel refineries to 19 by the year 2012, and from no commercial-scale power plants operating carbon capture to five by the year 2015.

We're putting this economy, through these governors, Mr. President, and putting this country on track to lead the world in clean coal technology which we can export -- including exporting to China, which China is building coal-powered plants at a rate of one per month -- one per month.  And they need this technology to capture their emissions.

And overall, I've learned through my regular calls with all these governors, Mr. President, the best way to make the Recovery Act work for everyone is to hear from everyone, and they've made significant input to how we've managed the Recovery Act.

Again, I want to end my brief comment by thanking them and welcoming them here to the White House.  And I think we have a chance to -- there used to be a Lawton Chiles, he used to be a governor, and a senator I worked with for years, and Lawton once said one day, I said, Mr. President, I said, "Lawton, why are you so excited about that bill we passed?"  And I thought I missed the significance, it wasn't that big of a deal.  He said, "Joe, it's so seldom in American politics when conscience and convenience cross paths, you should celebrate."  (Laughter.)  This is a place where conscience and convenience cross paths.

THE PRESIDENT:  Let's get it done.  Thank you very much, everybody.

END
2:14 P.M. EST

Presidential Memorandum -- A Comprehensive Federal Strategy on Carbon Capture and Storage

MEMORANDUM FOR  THE SECRETARY OF STATE
   THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY
   THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
   THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
   THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE
   THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE
   THE SECRETARY OF LABOR
   THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION
   THE SECRETARY OF ENERGY
   THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT
      AND BUDGET
   THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL
      PROTECTION AGENCY
   THE CHAIRMAN OF THE FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY
      COMMISSION
   THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND
      TECHNOLOGY POLICY
   THE CHAIR OF THE COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL
      QUALITY

SUBJECT:  A Comprehensive Federal Strategy on Carbon
   Capture and Storage

For decades, the coal industry has supported quality high-paying jobs for American workers, and coal has provided an important domestic source of reliable, affordable energy.  At the same time, coal-fired power plants are the largest contributor to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and coal accounts for 40 percent of global emissions.  Charting a path toward clean coal is essential to achieving my Administration's goals of providing clean energy, supporting American jobs, and reducing emissions of carbon pollution.  Rapid commercial development and deployment of clean coal technologies, particularly carbon capture and storage (CCS), will help position the United States as a leader in the global clean energy race.

My Administration is already pursuing a set of concrete initiatives to speed the commercial development of safe, affordable, and broadly deployable CCS technologies.  We have made the largest Government investment in carbon capture and storage of any nation in history, and these investments are being matched by private capital.  The Department of Energy is conducting a comprehensive clean coal technology program including research, development, and demonstration of CCS technologies and is pursuing important international cooperative initiatives to spur demonstration and deployment of CCS.  The Environmental Protection Agency is developing regulations that address the safety, efficacy, and environmental soundness of injecting and storing carbon dioxide underground.  The Department of the Interior is assessing, in coordination with the Department of Energy, the country's geologic capacity to store carbon dioxide and promoting geological storage demonstration projects on public lands.  All of this work builds on the firm scientific basis that now exists for the viability of CCS technology.

To further this work and develop a comprehensive and coordinated Federal strategy to speed the commercial development and deployment of clean coal technologies, I hereby establish an Interagency Task Force on Carbon Capture and Storage (Task Force).  You shall each designate a senior official from your respective agency to serve on the Task Force, which shall be Co Chaired by the designees from the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Task Force shall develop within 180 days of the date of this memorandum a proposed plan to overcome the barriers to the widespread, cost-effective deployment of CCS within 10 years, with a goal of bringing 5 to 10 commercial demonstration projects online by 2016.  The plan should explore incentives for commercial CCS adoption and address any financial, economic, technological, legal, institutional, social, or other barriers to deployment.  The Task Force should consider how best to coordinate existing administrative authorities and programs, including those that build international collaboration on CCS, as well as identify areas where additional administrative authority may be necessary.  The Co Chairs shall report progress periodically to the President through the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.

Ultimately, comprehensive energy and climate legislation that puts a cap on carbon pollution will provide the largest incentive for CCS because it will create stable, long-term, market-based incentives to channel private investment in low carbon technologies.  My Administration's new CCS strategy will pave the way for this energy transition by identifying and removing barriers to rapid commercial deployment and by providing greater legal and regulatory clarity.  This will help to spur private investment in CCS in the near term -- investment that will create good jobs and benefit communities.

This memorandum shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.  This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

The Secretary of Energy is hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

      BARACK OBAMA