Obama Dedicates $467 Million of Recovery Act Funding for Geothermal and Solar Projects

[Nathanael]

President Barack Obama today committed over $467 million to accelerate development and deployment of geothermal and solar energy resources across the U.S., setting the stage for the creation of clean energy jobs and new technological breakthroughs in the years to come.

"We have a choice. We can remain the world’s leading importer of oil, or we can become the world’s leading exporter of clean energy,” said President Obama.

Link: http://www.energyboom.com/obama-dedicates-467-million-recovery-act-funding-geothermal-and-solar-projects

[struggle4progress]

1. Text: Obama’s Remarks on Solar Energy

Published: May 27, 2009
Following is the text of President Obama's address on the economy and solar energy, delivered at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas on Wednesday, as released by the White House

... Like millions of other Americans, we come to this beautiful city for the sights and for the sounds -- and today we come for the sun.

Because right now, we're standing near the largest solar electric plant of its kind in the entire Western Hemisphere -- the entire Western Hemisphere. More than 72,000 solar panels built on part of an old landfill provide 25 percent of the electricity for the 12,000 people who live and work here at Nellis. That's the equivalent of powering about 13,200 homes during the day.

It's a project that took about half a year to complete, created 200 jobs, and will save the United States Air Force, which is the largest consumer of energy in the federal government, nearly $1 million -- $1 million a year. It will also reduce harmful carbon pollution by 24,000 tons per year, which is the equivalent of removing 4,000 cars from our roads. Most importantly, this base serves as a shining example of what's possible when we harness the power of clean, renewable energy to build a new, firmer foundation for economic growth ...

... We know the cost of our oil addiction all too well. It's the cost measured by the billions of dollars we send to nations with unstable or unfriendly regimes. We help to fund both sides of the war on terror because of our addiction to oil. It's the cost of our vulnerability to the volatility of the oil markets. It's the cost we feel in shifting weather patterns that are already causing unprecedented droughts and more intense storms. It's a cost we can't bear any longer ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/27/us/politics/27obama.text.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

[Nathanael]

2. Hopefully the Administration is in it for the long haul

Thanks for supplying this Obama address, struggle4progress. Obama and his administration have made huge strides in funding renewable energy and making clean tech a major energy priority. Now, he just needs to convince more of his fellow elected officials and the general public not only of the importance of generating new forms of power, but also, that lives will not be adversely affected in the process.