03.19.02

Senator Cantwell's Floor Statement (as prepared) on the Renewable Portfolio Standard Provision in the Senate Energy Bill

Thank you Mr. President.

We are debating this energy bill against the backdrop of this country's most severe energy crisis in years, the effects of which continue to impact ratepayers throughout the country. And now September 11 and the war against terrorism underscore our national security interest in developing energy independence.

So it is clear that the time has come for this country to enact a 21st century energy policy.

But we will fail if this bill is simply about the extent to which we should increase oil production, or determining the best route for pipelines. We will fail if we do not learn lessons from the past and recognize that we are on the cusp of a revolution in energy technology that could be at least as significant as the revolution in computing technology.

We are faced today with a choice: we can go down the path of the past, debating the false choices of conservation vs. production, regulation vs. deregulation, nuclear vs. fossil.

Or we can recognize that at its core the debate over a 21st century energy policy is about developing new energy technology that will lead us to a system of cleaner, more efficient, distributed power, located closer to the homes and businesses it is built to serve.

Mr. President, the Renewable Portfolio Standard that we are debating today is the centerpiece of our efforts to create a 21st century energy policy, marked by environmentally responsible sources of energy. An aggressive Renewable Portfolio Standard will help this nation diversify its supply of energy, level the playing field for renewable resources, and encourage investment in clean energy technologies.

A transition to clean, renewable sources of energy will help stabilize increasing and volatile fossil fuel prices, ease energy supply shortages and disruptions, clean up dangerous air pollution and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases.

Again, the arguments in favor of a strong federal Renewable Portfolio Standard are straightforward.

A strong RPS will:

spur more environmentally responsible generation; diversify our electricity sources, thus enhancing reliability and helping to protect our economy from price spikes; and create a national market for renewables and clean energy technology, spurring innovation and reducing their cost-potentially for international export. Today, less than 2 percent of this nation's electricity is generated by non-traditional sources of power such as wind, solar, and geothermal energy. This has got to change. And by putting in place a Renewable Portfolio Standard, we will set this nation down a path toward a more independent, sustainable, and stable power supply.

Mr. President, I want to emphasize today just how important it is to diversify our generating resources. As many of my colleagues are aware, the Pacific Northwest last year suffered through the second worst drought in our region's recorded history. In Washington state, about 80 percent of our generation comes from hydroelectric sources. So, because of this drought, consumers in my state were exposed far more directly to the pervasive market dysfunction taking place in California. As a result, many of our utilities have had to raise their retail rates more than 50 percent.

Mr. President, the Northwest has traditionally benefited from utility rates that are among the lowest in the nation, but to maintain our low rates, we must diversify our resource portfolio. To accomplish this goal, many of our utilities are making tremendous investments in new generation, much of it from our ample renewable resources. We realize that investment in renewables is affordable and a perfect compliment to our existing hydroelectric base.

For example, I visited the Stateline Wind Project last August, located near Walla Walla, Washington. The wind farm, which went into operation December 13, consists of 399 turbines and has the capacity to produce 263 Megawatts of electricity. That's enough energy to serve almost 70,000 homes.

The Bonneville Power Administration, which supplies about 70 percent of the power consumed in Washington state, has set a goal of obtaining a total of a thousand megawatts of wind energy.

Many of our small rural utilities are banding together to invest in wind projects, and the Yakima Tribe is also exploring similar options. Still others are investing in the installation of a wave energy demonstration project near Neah Bay, Washington, which would harness the power of the tides to produce electricity.

Mr. President, as we consider the Renewable Portfolio Standard provisions of this bill, I think it is important to recognize the tremendous untapped potential that these renewables represent. Washington state and the Pacific Northwest have begun to make the investments. With the construction now underway, our regional renewable resources, excluding most hydropower, will soon approach four percent-far surpassing the national average. But I believe we can do even better.

A strong Renewable Portfolio Standard will create the market certainty that companies and utilities need to continue down the path toward resource diversification and technological innovation.

Increasing our supply of renewable resources makes not just environmental sense, but economic sense as well. A study released last November, sponsored by a group of Northwest utilities and interest groups, estimated that the international market for clean energy technologies will grow to $180 billion a year over the next 20 years. It is in our national economic interest to set policy that will ensure the United States captures a major part of this market.

Already, the Northwest has a $1.4 billion clean energy industry that is on track to grow to $2.5 billion over the next several years, creating over 12,000 new jobs in our region. With the right public policies in place, we could attain 3.5 percent of the worldwide market for clean energy technologies-including not just generation, but the smart-grid (transmission) technologies needed to bring power to market more efficiently--and create as many 35,000 new jobs in the Northwest.

Mr. President, developing the clean energy technology industry-on a national level-means job creation. We need a federal Renewable Portfolio Standard both to break our century's old reliance on traditional fossil fuels and to create the predictable market for renewable technologies, laying the groundwork for even greater technological innovations.

Mr. President, last week on this floor, the Senate was unable to take make meaningful progress on the important issue of corporate average fuel economy standards for our nation's vehicles. We had before us an opportunity to alleviate threats to our national energy and economic security posed by foreign oil dependence, while protecting our environment and taking a positive step in the battle to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. And yet we failed to act.

Nonetheless, I continue to believe that addressing the transportation sector's consumption of fossil fuels is an integral part of any energy policy designed to meet the needs of our 21st Century economy.

But today we have another opportunity to make progress. The Renewable Portfolio Standard is another one of the threshold issues that will determine whether the Senate enacts a dig, drill and burn energy policy--or an energy policy for the 21st century.

Now is the time to enact an energy policy that will help us meet these goals. A strong Renewable Portfolio Standard will encourage more use of renewable energy sources, reduce harmful air and water pollution from coal and fossil fuels. It will help ensure a sustainable, secure energy supply and protect the environment for future generations. And it will create new investment, income and jobs in our communities, especially in rural areas. These are the characteristics of a 21st Century energy policy.

I ask my colleagues to support a strong Renewable Portfolio Standard, and-most importantly-oppose any effort to strip from this bill or in any way undermine this critical measure. I urge my colleagues to vote against the Kyl amendment. I yield the floor.

Thank you.