energy policy
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House votes against energy-saving lightbulbs
The House passed an amendment that prohibits spending to enforce lighting efficiency standards established by 2007's energy law.
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Critical List: It’s hot; 2.7 million Americans work in clean energy
It's hot. It's hot. It's hooooottttt.
You want green jobs? Here are your green jobs: 2.7 million Americans are employed in the clean energy economy, according to a new report from the Brookings Institution.
But that could all end with a drop-off in government subsidies across the world. -
Tepco bulldozed hill that could have prevented Fukushima disaster
When engineers first assessed the future home of the Fukushima nuclear power plant that would eventually melt down in response to a tsunami, the site featured a striking, 82-feet-high bluff that overlooked the ocean below.
It was more than high enough to have withstood the tsunami that struck the site in March.
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In dimwitted move, GOP set to repeal lightbulb standard that saves billions
Republican lawmakers want to repeal the Energy Independence and Security Act, which saved consumers money by setting lightbulb efficiency standards.
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Are renewable portfolio standards worth it?
Renewable portfolio standards may increase ratepayers' electricity bills, but that's a small price to pay for moving toward renewable energy.
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Google's plan for cleantech world dominance says government policy is essential
Google set out to discover the effects of technological breakthroughs, and in the process discovered that strong government policies are key to accelerating their penetration into the market. Radical new battery technology and solar panels are great, but regular consumers don’t pick them up unless they're nudged in the right direction. In other words, the internet’s most successful capitalists say that the free market is all well and good, but we really need government regulation.
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Even Republicans and climate skeptics support fuel efficiency and clean energy
Regardless of how they felt about global warming -- from "alarmed" to "dismissive" -- nearly everyone in this 2009 survey supported increased fuel efficiency standards. Even the ones who dismissed the threat of climate change weren't very strongly opposed. What's more, 90 percent of people think clean energy should be a priority for the president, including 85 percent of Republicans. And more than 80 percent support increased funding of renewable energy research.
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Why tapping the strategic petroleum reserve is a bad idea
When it comes to oil, this is what the U.S. looks like to the rest of the world
The Obama administration has decided over the next two months to release 60 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This is kind of like giving Bubbles from the Wire $5 when he's in the middle of one of his smack binges -- it's not really going to affect consumption, and it sure as hell doesn't address the root problem, which is our seemingly insuperable addiction to oil.
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Japanese workers wear Hawaiian shirts to save energy
To prevent rolling blackouts as a result of the failure of Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant, the Japanese government is mandating that all offices set their thermostats at 82 degrees F this summer. Combined with the usual salaryman armor — a dark business suit — that sounds a little like the eighth circle of hell (the […]