Homegrown Energy

America’s energy resources are vast and varied, and the global market for energy alternatives is huge and growing. It’s time to adopt a “Made in America” approach to energy that will boost energy independence and help revive our economy.

America has enough energy resources to significantly reduce our reliance on other countries to meet our energy needs. Moving toward energy independence will keep more of the money we spend on energy here at home, creating more domestic jobs and giving a much-needed boost to our economy.

• Hydraulic fracturing (also known as “fracking”) has helped make natural gas supplies more accessible and will create new jobs in the fossil fuel industry
• Exploring and extracting oil off our shores will also help reduce dependence on foreign oil and create new jobs
• U.S. installed wind capacity grew 15% in 2010 and the U.S. wind industry has added over 35% of all new generating capacity over the past 5 years. The average wind farm is expected to be fully competitive with conventional electricity by 2016.
• U.S. solar energy installations grew 109% in 2011 and there were over 100,000 solar workers in the U.S. as of August 2011, more than double solar employment in 2009.
• Biofuels and bioenergy—using agricultural products and waste as feedstock— show great promise in reviving rural areas that are struggling economically.

Real, long-term energy security requires reducing our dependence on oil and other fossil fuels by using energy more efficiently and developing homegrown, renewable energy resources that can never run out.

• America uses 25% of the world’s oil, but controls less than 3% of known reserves. We cannot simply drill our way out of dependence here at home, because domestic reserves cannot meet our nation’s needs by themselves. 
• Homegrown renewable energy -- such as wind and solar power and biofuels-- never run out.  And, they create jobs here in the U.S. that cannot be shipped overseas.  This is a valuable addition to our energy portfolio.
  • America’s clean energy sector grew by 8.3% between 2003 and 2010—that’s nearly twice as fast as the overall economy.
  • Global investment in clean energy reached a new record of $260bn in 2011, a 5% increase from 2010.
• Energy efficiency leaves more money in the pockets of American families to save, invest, and spend on American goods and services.
• Energy sources such as wind and solar power do not contribute to air pollution, and do not pose health threats to American families.

The energy revolution is here, and America should lead it.

• Countries are racing to win the global race for clean energy. Last year, investment in renewable energy alone topped a record $260 billion.
• The U.S. cannot afford to lose our competitive edge in this huge and fast-growing worldwide market.  This is about developing and owning the technologies that are going to power the future.