Perry leads Texas GOP fight against climate bill

[white cloud]

But it's his ties to the notoriously polluting big oil and chemical industries that rankle environmentalists. That, and the fact that Perry is skeptical of the science linking climate change and carbon emissions — a stance shared by the three commissioners he appointed to lead the Texas environmental agency.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/Perry_leads_Texas_GOP_fight_against_climate_bill.html

[sonias]

1. The crazy part is ignoring the new economy

Plenty of other states will be there to pick up the opportunities that Texas leaves on the table. It's already happening. Texas currently leads the country in wind power production but we're still clinging to energy solutions from the last century. As long as there are fossil fuels in the ground Texas is going to fight for every last drop to be processed.

Texas leads the nation in industrial pollution and has more oil refineries, chemical manufacturing plants and coal-fired power plants than any other state. The massive oil and chemical plants employ nearly 270,000 people and pay billions in state and local taxes. Texas provides about 20 percent of the nation's oil production, one-third of the natural gas, 25 percent of refining and 60 percent of chemical manufacturing.

(snip)

"We've been able to reduce emissions and have a growing population and a growing economy, and we didn't do it through regulations and taxes. We did it through incentives," Perry said. "Put the cap and trade legislation in place, and those businesses at some point will pick up and move offshore. They just can't stay in business."

Jim Marston, director of the Texas office of the Environmental Defense Fund, doubts that claim. He says Texas companies can be at the forefront of a new green economy and that Perry's employing the same scare tactics used when the 1990 Clean Air Act was considered.

"This is just not credible," Marston said. "Rick Perry gets extra campaign contributions from industry folks or these people he spends time with at the country club and he's going to say what they want him to say."

One thing you can say about Perry is he stays "bought". Once the polluters pay him their protection money through campaign contributions, he stays on message for them "real good".

Sonia

[Lithos]

2. Pshaw....

You know he just needs the hydrocarbons for his hair gel oil.

L-

[sonias]

3. Wind Power Generates Green Economy In West Texas

Wall Street Jounal 10/28/2009
Wind Power Generates Green Economy In West Texas
(snip)
Roscoe is situated in Nolan County, which has a population of about 17,000 and contains nearly 10% of all U.S. wind power-generating capacity--built at breakneck speed over the last decade. The financial crisis and bottlenecks in transmission capacity have slowed down the proliferation of wind turbines for now, but the area has established itself as a powerhouse for an emerging technology that could help reduce U.S. emissions of the heat-trapping gases blamed for climate change. This development occurs as critics of the Obama administration--including top Texas leaders--say that the number of "green" jobs won't replace the number of oil and gas jobs destroyed by U.S. policies to stem global warming.

Greg Wortham, the mayor of Sweetwater---the county seat and economic hub--said wind-power development in the region could serve as a model for the revitalization of rural America, if the windy Great Plains are linked to the populated and power-hungry East and West Coasts. Already local businesses and construction crews that cut their teeth in the vicinity's pioneering wind farms are testing their mettle in emerging wind economies like Iowa.

Wortham, who was elected mayor on a pro-wind platform in 2007, says that 20% of Nolan County's jobs are related to the wind development rush here--as many as those in oil and gas. He says these "green" jobs come with a base pay of about $50,000--while the average wage per job in 2007 was $28,800. In August, the county had an unemployment rate of 6.2%--lower even than Texas' relatively robust 8.1% rate.

"This is the microcosm of what's going to happen," Wortham says.

Who wants a $50K job at the expense of a $29K oil industry job? Why can't we put something useful like this on the ballot in Texas?

And let's not forget the potential for solar either

Public Citizen Texas - Texas Solar Roadmap Feb. 2009
Wildcatting the Sun
(snip) Page 31
Job Creation
Texas is well-situated to take advantage of the global boom in solar energy, especially if we develop a
strong solar market right here in the state.

Photovoltaics - According to a PV industry analysis, with the correct incentives in place, the solar
photovoltaic market could attract more than a $34 billion investment by 2015. Of that, Texas could
attract almost $5 billion.

Under business-as-usual conditions, by 2015 Texas will have 251 MW installed, Texas’ technical
potential for 2015 is an amazing 70,882 MW.49

A study by the Center for American Progress reports that an investment in renewables would create
roughly four times more jobs than an investment in traditional sources of electricity.
www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/09/green_recovery.html Furthermore, an analysis by
the Vote Solar project finds that by 2020 under a 2000 mw program the solar energy industry could
create almost 21,500 new jobs in Texas.

Job Type Direct Jobs Indirect/Induced Total
Manufacturing 2,700 9,400 12,100
Installation 2,100 7,200 9,300

A white paper released by the IC2 Institute at the University of Texas at Austin highlights two studies
that project major solar job growth in Texas. The first states that by becoming a world leader in solar
manufacturing and construction, in concert with a suite of climate protection strategies, Texas could
generate 123,000 net new high-wage jobs in the technology advanced manufacturing and electrical
services industries. The second study states that by 2015 Texas could capture more than 13% of all
new jobs and more than 13% of all investment in the solar industry. In these scenarios, workers
whose jobs have been outsourced offshore would regain employment opportunities, and high-tech
manufacturing employment in Texas would return to pre-recession (pre-2001) levels.

As mentioned earlier, Texas is also already home to approximately 11.5% of the world’s silicon
processing capacity, and companies that produce silicon will be among those likely to prosper as a
result of the expansion of solar power.

Sonia

[onestepforward]

4. Our state has so much potential

to create higher-paying green jobs, to improve the quality of our environment and to perhaps be a leader in the world in the development of clean energy. What could be a better time than right now?

We are in desperate need of new leadership.

[sonias]

5. "We aredesperate need of new leadership."

Amen to that statement!

Now if all the people hurting in Texas could see the truth and vote for change. They sure aren't going to get a new sustainable economy with Perry driving us into a ditch the way bush did the country.


:thumbsup:

Sonia

[onestepforward]

6. Gilbert Says His Energy Plan Would Help Bring More Solar Projects To State

link: http://hankgilbert.com/2009/11/lack-of-incentives-causes-solar-project-to-snub-texas/

TYLER—Democratic gubernatorial candidate Hank Gilbert (D-Whitehouse) said this morning that yesterday’s announcement that a large solar panel factory will be built in Arizona instead of Texas should be a wake up call for the state—and one which his energy and environment policy would have helped prevent.

“Texas is bleeding green jobs to other states because we are not doing enough to attract renewable and clean energy industries to Texas,” Gilbert said.

On Monday, Suntech Power (NYSE: STP) announced that it will open a solar panel factory which will bring 75 jobs and manufacture 30 megawatts of solar modules annually in Arizona. Texas was among finalists vying for the new plant. Suntech officials last month indicated that solar incentives would be a key factor in selecting the final site for the plant.

“There were a handful of bills introduced during the 81st Legislature dealing with allocating funs from the Texas Enterprise Fund and the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to green and clean energy related industries and initiatives. None passed,” he continued. “Republicans in the Texas Legislature did their best to make sure that Governor Perry’s economic development slush funds were not touched so he can keep on using the funds to reward campaign contributors like he did Countrywide,” Gilbert said.

Under Governor Perry’s leadership, the Texas Enterprise Fund awarded failed financial giant Countrywide $20 million in 2004. Countrywide’s political action committee donated $7,000 to Governor Perry’s re-election campaign between 2002 and 2009. Earlier this year, it was reported that Countrywide had failed to meet its job creation goals.

“Texas needs bold, common sense plans to make our state the leader in renewable energy production and the manufacture of renewable technologies. This won’t happen under Governor Perry’s watch. He is far too beholden to the old energy establishment,” Gilbert concluded.

Under “Go Green, Texas,” Gilbert’s energy and environment policy released last week, 50 percent of the current balance of the Texas Emerging Technology Fund and the Texas Enterprise Fund—as well as half of all future revenue appropriated to these funds for the next ten years—would be required to go to attracting green industry and green jobs and the development of green energy and environmentally sound technologies.

“If my plan were in place, Texas would have been much better equipped to compete for this facility,” Gilbert said.

I had to go see what Hank thought about this mess :)

[sonias]

7. He's right and he's thinking about the future

“Texas needs bold, common sense plans to make our state the leader in renewable energy production and the manufacture of renewable technologies. This won’t happen under Governor Perry’s watch. He is far too beholden to the old energy establishment,” Gilbert concluded.

Good for Hank.

:applause: :kick:


Sonia