    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [March 5, 2008]
    [Pages 317-324]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference
    March 5, 2008

        Thank you all. Thank you for the warm welcome. Thanks for coming.
    It's my honor to be here. I'm proud to address the Washington
    International Renewable Energy Conference. Thankfully, you only left it
    for five words. [Laughter.] I appreciate your commitment to renewable
    energy. I probably didn't help today when I rode over in a 20-car
    motorcade. [Laughter.]
        I appreciate the fact that--I hope you understand that you're
    pioneers on the frontiers of change; that I fully suspect that this
    conference will seem unbelievably outdated within a decade; that people
    will marvel about how far technology has helped change our habits and
    change the world. And I hope you take great pride in being a part of
    this constructive change. And so thanks for coming to America. We
    welcome you here.
        To my fellow citizens, thanks for being entrepreneurs and forward
    thinkers. To members of my administration, like Sam Bodman, who just introduced me, or Ed Schafer, the head of the Agriculture Department, or Steve
    Johnson, EPA, thank you all for serving
    our country. Thanks for your kind words, Sam. I appreciate all the
    others who are here from my administration.
        Mike Eckhart is the president of the
    American Council on Renewable Energy. He and I went to Harvard together.
    I don't know if he is--has had to spend time overcoming that, but I
    certainly have and--[laughter]--particularly in Texas politics. But it's
    good to be with my friend Mike. I can assure you that when we were at
    Harvard Business School together, he never envisioned that we would be
    in our respective positions, like we are today. As a matter of fact, I
    know in 1975, he never even thought about the word ``renewable fuel,''
    much less ``President George W. Bush.''
        I welcome the Ambassadors who are here. I welcome--listen, let me
    start first by telling you that America has got to change its habits.
    We've got to get off oil. And the reason why is, first, oil is--
    dependency on oil presents a real challenge to our economy. As economies
    grow--and we want all our economies to grow; we want people to be
    prosperous. We want people who are living in poverty to be able to grow
    out of poverty. We want there to be general prosperity. But as economies
    grow, until we change our habits, there is going to be more dependency
    on oil.
        My job, as the President of the country, is to put progrowth
    policies in place. But we're dependent upon oil, and so as our economy
    grows, it's going to create more demand for oil--same with China, same
    with India, same with other growing countries. And it should be obvious
    to you all that the demand is outstripping supply, which causes prices
    to go up. And it's making it harder here in America for working families
    to save and for farmers to be prosperous and for small businesses to
    grow.
        The dependency upon oil also puts us at the mercy of terrorists. If
    there's tight supply and demand, all it requires is one terrorist
    disruption of oil and that price goes even higher. It's in our interests
    to end our dependency on oil because it--that dependency presents a
    challenge to our national security. In 1985, 20 percent of America's oil
    came from abroad. Today, that number is nearly 60 percent.
        Now, all the countries we import from are friendly, stable
    countries, but some countries we get oil from don't particularly like
    us. They don't like the form of government that we embrace. They don't
    believe in the same freedoms we believe in. And that's a problem from a
    national security perspective for the United States and any

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    other nation that values its economic sovereignty and national
    sovereignty.
        And finally, our dependence on fossil fuels like oil presents a
    challenge to our environment. When we burn fossil fuels, we release
    greenhouse gases. The concentration of greenhouse gases has increased
    substantially.
        We recognize all three of these challenges, and we're doing
    something about it. I've come today to tell you that America is the kind
    of country that when they see a problem, we address it head on. I've set
    a great goal for our country, and that is to reduce our dependence on
    oil by investing in technologies that will produce abundant supplies of
    clean and renewable energy and, at the same time, show the world that
    we're good stewards of the environment.
        Now, look, I understand stereotypes are hard to defeat. People get
    an image planted in their head, and sometimes it causes them not to
    listen to the facts. But America is in the lead when it comes to energy
    independence, we're in the lead when it comes to new technologies, we're
    in the lead when it comes to global climate change, and we'll stay that
    way.
        Overall, over the past 7 years, or since I've been the President,
    the Federal Government spent more than $12 billion to research, develop,
    and promote alternative energy sources. Our private sector is investing
    a lot of money, and I fully understand there needs to be consistent
    policy out of the U.S. Government that has thus far provided incentives
    to invest. What the Government doesn't need to do is send mixed signals.
    I understand private capital, understand how it flows. And so when
    people look at the United States to determine whether we're committed to
    new technologies that will change how we live, they not only need to
    look at the Federal investment, but they've got to understand, there's a
    lot of smart money heading into the private sector to help develop these
    new technologies.
        Our strategy is twofold: One, we're going to change the way we drive
    our cars; and two, we'll change the way we power our businesses and
    homes. In other words, the two most vulnerable areas to economic
    disruption happens to be automobile use and electric power. The two
    biggest opportunities to help change the environment is through how we
    drive our cars and how we power our country. So first, let me talk about
    automobiles.
        I laid out a goal for the United States to reduce gasoline
    consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years; that's called 20-10.
    Now, by the way, that's in the face of a growing economy, to reduce
    gasoline usage by 20 percent over 10 years.
        And we'll work with Congress. For those of you who watch the
    American legislative process, you think it's probably impossible for the
    American President to work with Congress these days. Well, it's not
    true. I was able to sign a good piece of legislation called the Energy
    Independence and Security Act of 2007. This legislation specifies a
    national mandatory fuel economy standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020,
    which will save billions of gallons of gasoline.
        Secondly, the legislation requires fuel producers to supply at least
    36 billion gallons of renewable fuel in the year 2022. In other words,
    these just aren't goals; these are mandatory requirements. I'm confident
    the United States can meet those goals, and I know we must for the sake
    of economic security, national security, and for the sake of being good
    stewards of the environment.
        Biodiesel is the most promising of these fuels. Biodiesel refineries
    can produce fuel from soybeans and vegetable oils and recycled cooking
    grease, from waste materials. All you out there with waste, you may be
    in business before you know it as this new technology kicks in. Most
    Americans--or more Americans are beginning to realize the benefits of
    biodiesel every year.

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        Last year, we produced 450 million gallons of biodiesel. That's up
    80 percent from 2006. Today, there are more than 650 biodiesel fueling
    stations in America. There are hundreds of fleet operators that use
    biodiesel to fuel their trucks, and that's just the beginning of what is
    going to be a substantial change in our driving habits.
        And then there's ethanol. In the 2000 campaign, I strongly supported
    ethanol. In 2008, it's amazing to think about how far our country has
    come since the year 2000. Ethanol production has quadrupled from 1.6
    billion gallons in 2000 to a little over 6.4 billion gallons in 2007.
        And the vast majority of that ethanol is coming from corn, and
    that's good. That's good if you're a corn grower. And it's good if
    you're worried about national security. I'd rather have our corn farmers
    growing energy than relying upon some nation overseas that may not like
    us. That's how I view it.
        In 2005, the United States became the world's leading ethanol
    producer. Last year, we accounted for nearly half of the worldwide
    ethanol production. I don't know if our fellow citizens understand that,
    but there is a substantial change taking place, primarily in the Midwest
    of our country.
        Corn ethanol holds a lot of promise, but there's a lot of
    challenges. If you're a hog raiser in the United States, you're
    beginning to worry about the cost of corn to feed your animals. I'm
    beginning to hear complaints from our cattlemen about the high price of
    corn. The high price of corn is beginning to affect the price of food.
        And so we got to do something about it. And the best thing to do is
    not to retreat from our commitment to alternative fuels but to spend
    research and development money on alternatives to ethanol made from
    other materials. For example, cellulosic ethanol holds a lot of promise.
    I'm sure there are people in the industry here that will tell you how
    far the industry has come in a very quick period of time.
        I look forward to the day when Texas ranchers can grow switchgrass
    on their country and then have that switchgrass be converted to fuel. I
    look forward to the day when people in the parts of our country that
    have got a lot of forests are able to convert wood chips into fuel. And
    those days are coming.
        The Department of Energy had dedicated nearly $1 billion to develop
    technologies that can make cellulosic ethanol cost competitive. And the
    interesting thing that's happened in a relatively quick period of time
    is that the projected cost of cellulosic ethanol has dropped by more
    than 60 percent. In other words, new technologies are coming. The job of
    the Federal Government is to expedite their arrival.
        Expanding the use in ethanol and biodiesel requires getting more
    cars on the road that use these alternative fuels. Now, we expect the
    private sector to respond. Our consumers are going to demand flex-fuel
    vehicles when they find out that these new technologies are available.
    As a matter of fact, there's 5 million flex-fuel vehicles on our roads
    now. I just saw some new ones here. Amazing joint venture with Mack and
    Volvo on these giant trucks that are using biodiesel to power them. I
    said, can you make it more than a couple of miles? The man said, ``Not
    only we can make it more than a couple of miles, we can accelerate out
    of danger if we need to.''
        Technology is changing. Five years ago, those trucks would not have
    been available for people at this exhibit to look at. Today, they're on
    the road. As a matter of fact, the United States Air Force is using
    these kinds of trucks. Things are changing.
        Another way to reduce our dependence on oil is promote hybrid
    vehicles. We're providing tax incentives to people to buy these fuel-
    efficient vehicles. In other words, the Government is saying, if you buy
    one, we'll give you a little incentive to do so. I've supported those
    policies. I think it

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    makes sense to create a consumerism for these kinds of vehicles.
        When I was first elected, there were virtually no hybrids on the
    roads. Today, there is nearly a million. We're also investing in plug-in
    hybrids. We want our city people driving not on gasoline but on
    electricity. And the goal, the short-term goal is to have vehicles that
    are capable of driving the first 40 miles on electricity--vehicles that
    don't look like a golf cart, by the way--vehicles that meet consumer
    demand. And that day is coming. The battery technologies are amazing,
    and the United States is investing millions of dollars to hasten the
    day. The battery technology is more efficient and competitive.
        This administration is a strong supporter of hydrogen. We spent
    about $1.2 billion in research and development to bring vehicles running
    on hydrogen to the market. A lot of people don't even know what I'm
    talking about when I'm talking about hydrogen. But the waste product of
    a hydrogen-powered vehicle is pure and clean water.
        This is an amazing opportunity for us. Now, this will be a long-term
    opportunity compared to ethanol and biodiesel and plug-in hybrids. But
    it makes sense to invest now and work on the technology so that when it
    comes--becomes cost competitive, it's available. We're also working for
    the day when, you know, these new fuels power not only automobiles and
    trucks but airplanes.
        In December, the United States Air Force flew a C-17--that's a huge
    airplane--from Washington State to New Jersey. For those of you who
    don't live in America, that is a long way. And they did so on a blend of
    regular and synthetic fuels. I was interested to see that Virgin
    Atlantic flew a 747 from London's Heathrow Airport to Amsterdam fueled
    partly by coconuts and Brazilian babassu nuts. I've never seen a babassu
    nut, but it's amazing that it helped power an airplane the size of a
    747. [Laughter]
        What I've just described to you is the beginning of a new era. And
    oh, it's probably hard to equate it to the Model T, but maybe we're not
    that far off. And the United States believes it's in our interests to
    promote this new era.
        Secondly, we've got to reduce our dependence on oil and fossil fuels
    and replace them with alternative energy sources to power our homes and
    our workplaces. Look, you can't have a vibrant economy unless you've got
    reliable electricity. For those of you in the developing world, you know
    what I'm talking about. As a matter of fact, the issue is not reliable
    electricity; the issue is getting electricity to people in the first
    place. Well, here in the United States, we've overcome those issues. And
    now we've got to make sure that we have enough of it that enables us to
    continue to grow. And the truth of the matter is, you've got to be--have
    a growing economy to be able to afford these technologies in the first
    place. So here are some ways that we're dealing with the issue of
    electricity.
        One, I strongly believe the United States must promote nuclear power
    here in the United States. Nuclear power--[applause]--if you're
    interested in economic growth and environmental stewardship, there's no
    better way to achieve both of them than through the promotion of nuclear
    power. Nuclear power is limitless. It's one existing source that
    generates a massive amount of electricity without causing any air
    pollution or any greenhouse gases.
        And yet the United States, we haven't built any nuclear power plants
    in a long time. What a promising technology available, and yet we're
    stuck, until recently. All of our citizens probably don't understand,
    but France, our ally and friend, gets nearly 80 percent of its power
    from nuclear power. Isn't that an amazing statistic? It's time for
    America to change.
        My administration is working to eliminate the barriers to
    development of nuclear power plants. Last year, we invested more

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    than $300 million in nuclear energy technologies. We want our people to
    understand that this generation of nuclear power plants is safe. We want
    people to feel comfortable about the expansion of nuclear power.
        There's regulatory uncertainty when it comes to permitting plants in
    the United States. You can't expect somebody to invest a lot of money
    and have the regulatory process at the very end stop that capital from
    being deployed. It makes no sense. Just like tax policy has to be
    certain, so does regulatory policy have to create a sense of certainty
    in order to get people to invest.
        So in the energy bill I signed in 2005, we began to address that
    uncertainty with Federal risk insurance for those who build nuclear
    power plants. This insurance protects the builders of the first six new
    plants against lawsuits--we got a lot of them in America, by the way,
    too many lawsuits, in my judgment--against bureaucratic obstacles and
    against delays beyond the--that would cause people to hesitate to
    participate in this program.
        We've also launched a program called Nuclear Power 2010. Sam
    Bodman is in charge of all these. It's a
    partnership between our industry and the U.S. Government. Since we've
    started these programs, we've received six applications to build and
    operate new nuclear power plants in the United States. The paradigm is
    beginning to shift. And we anticipate that another 13 applications will
    be submitted this year.
        Many of the construction projects will be supported by $18.5 billion
    in loan guarantees provided by the Government. By the way, that's part
    of a loan guarantee product--projects that we got out of Congress--18
    billion for the nukes, 10 billion for renewable energy expansions in the
    United States. This will enable our plant owners, guys that are applying
    for loans--[laughter]--the whole purpose is, is we want to expand our
    nuclear power industry. And we're taking specific actions to do it.
        You know, there's a lot of politicians who just talk. I hope when
    history is written of this administration, we not only talked; we
    actually did positive things and constructive things.
        We're also working with our friends overseas for the Global Nuclear
    Energy Partnership. I believe developing nations ought to be encouraged
    to use nuclear power. I believe it's in our interests. I believe it will
    help take pressure off the price of oil. And I know it's going to help
    protect the environment. And so we're working with other nations, like
    Japan and France and Great Britain and Russia and China, to form this
    energy partnership, the purpose of which is to help developing nations
    secure cost-effective and proliferation-resistant nuclear power and, at
    the same time, to conduct joint research on how to deal with the nuclear
    waste issue through positive, productive reprocessing.
        And so the United States of America has got a strategy to help
    change our electricity mix here at home. And part of that strategy is on
    nuclear power. Another part of that strategy is based upon wind power.
    Now, since 2001, America has increased wind energy production by more
    than 300 percent. This is a new industry for us, and it's beginning to
    grow. More than 20 percent of new electrical generating capacity added
    in America came from wind last year. I met some of the wind boys.
    They're excited about the opportunities in the U.S. market, and they
    should be because this new technology is taking hold. Last year, America
    installed more wind power capacity than any other country in the world.
        I don't know if you know this or not: When I was the Governor of
    Texas, I signed a electric deregulation bill that encouraged and
    mandated the use of renewable energy. Today, Texas is--produces more
    wind energy than any other State in the Union. If an oil State can
    produce wind energy, other States in America can produce wind energy. I
    remember when I signed the bill, I said, ``There's a new

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    day coming for wind.'' And they said, ``Well, you're leaving the State,
    and a lot of hot air is going with it.'' [Laughter]
        In addition to wind power, we have spent, since I've been the
    President, $1 billion on harnessing the power of the Sun. The solar
    technology folks who are here will tell you there's some amazing changes
    have taken place in a quick period of time. I mean, I really see a day
    in which each house can be a little electric generator of their own and
    feeding back excess power into the grid through the use of solar power.
        I told you that we're--and by the way, last year, U.S. solar
    installations grew by more than 32 percent in the U.S. In other words, I
    hope you're excited by these statistics. I certainly am. But these are
    just the beginning. Before I came over here, I really did sit around the
    Oval Office trying to figure out what a President will be saying 10
    years from now. If you really think about what would have been said in
    2000 compared to today, imagine what's going to be said 10 years from
    now compared to today.
        I will repeat something I've been saying a lot here in America: The
    United States is serious about confronting climate change. And the
    strategies I just laid out for you are an integral part of dealing with
    climate change. Should there be an international agreement? Yes, there
    should be, and we support it. But I would remind you, an agreement will
    be effective, and that's what we want; we want an effective agreement. I
    think we ought to be results-oriented people, not process people. It's
    one thing to have a nice conference, but out of those conferences, we
    should expect results. We want a strategy that works, not sounds good.
        And so in order for there to be effective international agreements,
    it must include--these agreements must include commitments--solid
    commitments--by every major economy, and no country should get a free
    ride.
        And meeting this goal is going to take some tough choices. I've got
    a good man named Dan Price on my staff who
    is leading the U.S. efforts on the major economies conferences that
    we're hosting. That's, by the way, running parallel to the U.N. process.
    This is not in lieu of the U.N. process; it is to enable the U.N.
    process to become effective.
        The first step is to get the major economies to agree to a goal. If
    you want commitment, if you want all folks at the table, the first step
    has got to be to say, we've got a problem, and here's a goal. I believe
    in setting clear goals, goals that are easy to understand.
        And then it's up to us, each nation, to develop a strategy to help
    meet those goals. We've got different economies. We've got different
    electricity mixes. What I've just described to you is a strategy to deal
    with energy in--dependence as well as climate change. It'll be different
    from country to country. We've got a different energy mix than a lot of
    nations do.
        And we expect countries that sign up to that goal to develop a
    strategy to meet that goal. And the United States will do the same
    thing, see. We're not going to say, okay, you set the goal, and you meet
    it, but we're not going to join. Once we join, we join. And so you're
    watching a process unfold to make sure that we have an effective
    international agreement.
        And I fully understand--and by the way, I want to repeat what I said
    before: An effective agreement is one that recognizes that economies got
    to grow in order to be able to afford investment in the first place,
    that you must have economic wealth in order to be able to afford the
    research and development.
        This is an issue that requires substantial commitments of money. And
    it's hard to commit money if you don't have any, and it's hard to commit
    money if your economies are hurting. So we ought to make sure we grow
    our economies and, at the same time, have the money necessary to

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    invest. And I fully understand some nations are incapable of affording
    these new technologies.
        And here's what we intend to do about it. There ought to be an
    international fund, a clean technology fund from the wealthy nations to
    help poorer nations clean up their environments. I call on our Congress
    to commit $2 billion to the fund. And in my travels here in my last year
    of the Presidency, I'm going to call on other wealthy nations to
    contribute to this fund.
        I want any agreement to be effective. I don't want us just to feel
    good. I want to be able to say, when it's all said and done, we've done
    something that's actually going to solve the problem. And if people are
    truly interested in solving the problem, if you're interested in
    expanding alternative energy, then we need to come together to eliminate
    tariffs and other trade barriers to enable clean technologies to move
    duty free around the world.
        There's too many impediments. There's too much protectionism. I
    mean, if you're truly interested in solving global climate change, then
    you should insist to your leaders to join the United States and other
    countries to make it easier to move these products, to eliminate all
    barriers to trade and technologies that will enable us to be better
    stewards of the environment.
        So here's the strategy to deal with climate change and energy
    dependence. The United States not only is pursuing this strategy on an
    international basis, we're also have got bilateral partnerships. With
    Brazil, for example, we signed a biofuels compact. We signed agreements
    with China to expand cooperation on biomass and to improve energy
    efficiencies for vehicles and industrial production. We're working with
    Sweden--the Deputy Prime Minister is here, and I'm honored you are
    here--on a very constructive relationship. There's a U.S. company
    working with United Kingdom's Wave Hub to harness the power of the seas.
        This is an ambitious vision I've just described to you. And
    obviously, you support something ambitious being done; otherwise, you
    wouldn't be here at this conference. I hope you're excited when you see
    the exhibits. Just keep in mind how far we have come in a short period
    of time, and be hopeful about how far we will go in a short period of
    time.
        There was an article in the New York Sun not long after Alexander
    Bell's famous phone call, his first phone call to a fellow named Thomas
    Watson. I would like to read to you from that article: ``It is to be
    doubted if the telephone will be used otherwise than locally. It's too
    sensitive for circuits exceeding a few miles in length.'' Imagine if
    that author of that article were alive today. I suspect he would have
    been sorry he used the words ``it should be doubted.'' After all, he'd
    see a world where crystal-clear telephone calls are placed over circuits
    that stretch not miles, but across the globe. He would see a wireless
    infrastructure developing around the world.
        Same thing is going to happen when it comes to energy. Oh, I know
    there's doubters, but I'm confident that when we look back at this
    period of time, they will say, how could you have doubted the capacity
    of mankind to develop the technologies necessary to deal with the real
    problems of the 21st century?
        Leave with one thing in mind: The United States is committed, and
    we're firm in our commitments to deal with energy problems and to deal
    with global climate change. And it's been my honor to be with you today.
        May God bless you.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:13 a.m. at the Washington Convention
    Center. In his remarks, he referred to Deputy Prime Minister Maud
    Olofsson of Sweden. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a
    Spanish language transcript of these remarks.

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