Understanding our clean energy options

Rising oil prices, growing awareness of climate change, and national security considerations have made energy policy a key issue in the 2008 presidential election.

Yet political rhetoric is making it difficult for voters to understand the technological and economic implications of our choices.

At Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), we work with these technologies on a day-to-day basis, and we'd like to clarify what our real options are.

"Clean" coal

Coal is by far the most carbon-intensive source of electricity, but it is also our most common fuel.

Clean coal refers to various technologies intended to reduce coal pollutants -- such as smog forming chemicals and greenhouse gases.

Though progress has been made in reducing air pollution associated with coal power plants, carbon dioxide is much more difficult to remove, and we have no way to reliably "sequester" it, or store it permanently.

Missing from the dialogue on clean coal is honest evaluation of its practicality-the Government Accountability Office estimates clean coal will cost 78 percent more than traditional methods.

Despite billions in federal research support, the U.S. Department of Energy doesn't expect "clean" coal's feasibility to be determined for at least another decade.

Nuclear

Many experts have called for a new generation of nuclear power because it does not release significant amounts of CO₂ into the atmosphere.

In the U.S., no new nuclear plant has been opened since 1996, partly due to safety concerns highlighted by the Three Mile Island incident in 1979. Though today's technology may be safer, high costs still make nuclear an irrational investment. See Amory Lovins' recent, peer-reviewed report.

The waste issue also remains unresolved and nuclear plants can take upwards of ten years to bring online due to regulatory and permitting delays, construction requirements, and safety inspections.

Energy efficiency

Efficiency -- which includes energy-saving buildings and appliances, smarter industrial processes, and cogeneration -- is often overlooked, since it is not technically a source of electricity. Yet it remains our country's cheapest, fastest, and biggest opportunity.

Governments can play a role in this equation. RMI has identified a major gap in electricity demand between states where governments have actively promoted efficiency -- such as California -- and those where it has been neglected.

Wind farms

Wind turbines, which provide carbon-free electricity at costs nearly competitive with fossil fuels, have seen tremendous growth in the past decade. Still, wind provides just 1 percent of our electricity; the Department of Energy predicts it could ultimately provide 20 percent or more. Production tax credits are critical for development to continue.

One caveat: wind power is only suitable for certain locations. As a result, major investment in the transmission grid nationwide is required to deliver wind power to distant cities. But because wind farms can be built in small increments, construction timelines are quite short. It only takes about two years to develop a wind site.

Solar power

Like wind, solar energy can be converted to carbon-free electricity, via photovoltaic panels or solar thermal power plants.

Both technologies require costly investments, which temporarily make this energy more expensive than conventional alternatives. But these investments will pay off: history has shown that for every doubling of capacity, costs drop an average of 23 percent.

Further, production and installation costs are dropping rapidly, and the federal government has set a goal of cost competitiveness by 2015.

The future

Our electric utilities are at a crossroads. In the business-as-usual scenario, new coal power plants will be built with promises of clean coal technology to be developed and implemented sometime in the future.

Barring a major technological breakthrough, these plants will tarnish our environmental record for the next 30 years -- the length of their expected lifespan.

Active federal leadership can accelerate the profitable adoption of efficiency and cleaner technologies.  So next time you hear political rhetoric around energy, consider the true implications.

Sam Newman is a consultant at Rocky Mountain Institute.