[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 143 (Wednesday, September 10, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8223-S8224]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 ENERGY

  Mr. TESTER. Mr. President, I rise today to visit about an issue we 
have all been talking about for some time: energy. In fact, truth be 
known, we have been talking about energy for over 30 years in this 
country, since the first energy crisis in the early 1970s.
  Over the August recess, I had the opportunity to go around the State 
of Montana--I logged hundreds of miles on my vehicle--and talk with 
Montanans virtually from all over the State about energy and our 
Nation's energy future. Every visit to the great State of Montana is 
another reminder

[[Page S8224]]

to me that many of the best ideas--if not all of the best ideas--are 
found outside of Washington, DC. From a dairy farm in western Montana 
that converts cow manure into enough electricity to power that farm and 
its neighbors through hydrogen fuel cells that keep the lights on in 
college classrooms, to a generator that turns tree bark into 
electricity, Montanans are finding innovative ways to meet their energy 
needs. That can not only help Montana, but it can help the whole 
country's energy future.
  It is no wonder, as I traveled around the State, as we see in 
Montana, gas prices a little under $4 a gallon, and as we see winter 
coming in and the potential of a cold winter and the potential for high 
heating oil and natural gas prices, that Montanans are very concerned 
about their energy future.
  This fall, over the next few weeks, we have an opportunity to address 
this country's energy future both in the short term and in the long 
term. Hopefully, we will address it. Hopefully, we can put the 
partisanship away. Hopefully, we will be more concerned about energy 
for this country's citizenry than about who is going to win the next 
election.
  Back in 1978, one of the other times we had energy problems in this 
country, Montana put out this book. It says 1978 on the bottom, and it 
is called ``Montana's Energy Almanac.'' This book contains information 
about oil and gas and coal. It also contains information about 
electricity transmission, solar power, geothermal, renewable energy, 
and a myriad of other issues. This book could have been written in 
2008. The fact is we had a format to move forth with this country's 
energy future, and it didn't happen. We had the ability to develop a 
long-term energy plan for this country, and it didn't happen--30 years 
ago, it didn't happen; a generation ago, it didn't happen.
  We need to make it happen this fall. It is critically important for 
this country. It is critically important for this Nation's security. As 
we come forth with an energy plan over the next few weeks, it will 
include drilling, make no mistake about it, and it should. Also 
remember this: It is not going to significantly decrease the prices at 
the pump right now. That doesn't mean it is the wrong thing to do. It 
is the right thing to do, because the truth is that if we can take our 
reliance off of places such as Venezuela, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, 
that is a good thing. You also must note that, right now, we are 
drilling. In fact--and I have stated this before on the floor--right 
now, it would be difficult to find a rig in the United States to punch 
a hole for gas or oil, because they are already doing that. If you are 
lucky enough to find a rig, you would be hard pressed to find the 
casing to put in that hole once it is drilled.
  The truth is we need to drill, and how much we drill will probably 
depend upon the availability of rigs and casings, and right now they 
are being used up. Drilling is part of the plan. We also need to invest 
in renewables, because drilling should be a bridge. We talk about 
bridges, but we never talk about where that bridge is going to go. It 
will go to nowhere unless we invest in renewables such as solar, wind, 
geothermal, biofuels, and cellulosic ethanol, and it is critically 
important for our long-term energy future. So we need to invest in 
those things by a myriad of ways.
  My colleague in the Senate, Max Baucus, has a bill that will do 
exactly that. That bill needs to be a part of the Energy plan to invest 
in solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, cellulosic ethanol--the list goes 
on and on--because there is tremendous opportunity out there. We need 
to invest in R&D in clean coal, battery technology, hydrogen 
technology, high-mileage cars, hybrids, and electric. We need to 
encourage innovation in R&D. It will happen because it is happening on 
the ground in places such as Montana now. We need to encourage the 
innovation.
  As this book said on all these issues, we also need to invest in 
transmission. We need to invest in the grid. If we are going to get 
electricity to consumers in a way that makes sense, in a way that is 
efficient and cost-effective, we need to invest in transmission.
  Finally, and potentially the most important of all these points, we 
need to eliminate the redtape. A few years ago, we eliminated the 
redtape for gas and oil companies. We need to do the same thing for 
renewable energy. The agencies have been understaffed and, quite 
frankly, it occupies a lot of time now to get a project through.
  We have a Montana-Alberta tie line project to move electricity from 
Montana to Alberta and from Alberta back to Montana with renewable 
energy on that line. It has been 3 years in progress. The redtape needs 
to be eliminated.
  I will be introducing a bill to cut through the redtape and encourage 
these kinds of renewable energy projects because, for the long-term 
future of this country, it is absolutely what we need to do.
  In closing, I wish to say this: Oil is hovering around $100 a barrel 
right now. It has backed off somewhat. Back in the seventies, we saw 
oil peak and then back off, and this book was put on the shelf and 
never looked at again, and probably every State in the Union had a book 
such as this.
  The truth is, we have an opportunity right now to address this issue 
from a short-term and a long-term standpoint. This issue is not going 
to go away. We have 3 percent of the reserves. We use 25 percent of the 
oil. We need to figure out not only ways to maximize our own oil 
capacity but also how we are going to take renewables into the future 
and other energy sources into the future so it makes sense for this 
country and its consumers and this country's security.
  As I said earlier, with countries such as Venezuela, Russia, and 
Saudi Arabia determining our energy future, that is no way to run a 
country. We need to address our energy problems, and we need to do it 
together today by all of us giving a little bit to find common ground 
to move forward.
  As we move across the next 57 days to the election, we ought to 
forget about it. We ought to forget about the election and do what is 
right for this country and develop a short-term and long-term energy 
plan that addresses current demand, future demand, affordability, and 
sustainability. Thirty years from now, I don't want to see a Senator 
standing up on this floor holding this book up saying: In 2008 we had 
this same problem, and we need to deal with it today.
  We need to deal with it now in 2008, this fall. We cannot blow this 
one.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from New Hampshire.

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