Gordon Ball on Energy & Oil

Transition from dirty fossil fuels to clean renewables

The energy challenges facing Americ are so critical that a concentrated investment in energy research and development should be undertaken. We send well over a billion dollars every day out of our country to buy oil and energy from other countries. I agree with experts who have proposed that we create a new "Manhattan Project" or Apollo-type initiative on energy to initiate breakthroughs in energy technology. Moving away from an oil economy and finding a real solution to our energy crisis will require a sustained commitment by America.

Commercial solar & wind, and also clean coal

• push the next generation of bio-fuels
• create a domestic bio-fuels industry through advances in biotechnology and cellulose-to-ethanol conversion
• advance commercialization of plug-in hybrids
• advance and promote development of commercial-scale renewable energy and technologies such as solar and wind
• invest in low-emission coal plants
• begin the transition to a digital electricity grid
• develop hydrogen fuel cells
• promote "green" buildings
• construct high-speed rail
• substitute part of the saved gas for oil or convert it to hydrogen

Supports construction of the Keystone pipeline