I recently read The Green Collar Economy, by Van Jones (with a forward by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.). I think President Obama must have read it too, since the ideas he's been talking about lately for fixing the economy are basically the same as what Jones sets out in his book. This is a good thing, in my opinion. Here are the main points from this book:
- The US is spending about $1,000,000,000,000 (1 trillion dollars by the US definition of "trillion", or 1 billion by the British definition of "billion" -- 1 million million either way) per year to subsidize the coal and oil industries. The book doesn't give any documentation on how it got this number, but if it's true, I can only ask: Why?
- Given that burning oil, natural gas, and coal contributes to global warming and other pollution problems, that the supplies of these resources is finite, and that dependence on foreign oil is a major security issue, we need to move towards not burning these fuels at all.
- We can replace the energy coming from coal and oil with geothermal, wind, and solar energy (see my previous post on energy for more on that idea), in conjunction with a move towards better efficiency and sustainable food production.
- The following public policy shifts are needed, in order to make this happen:
- Stop subsidizing oil and coal
- Introduce a "cap and trade" system that will cap carbon emissions in the US at current levels, decreasing the cap every year on a pre-determined schedule (so that industry can plan ahead), and set up a system for companies to trade their carbon cap credits.
- Streamline electricity transmission rules, so that any electricity producer is guaranteed access to the local grid everywhere, while owners of transmission lines and local grids are compensated for their use (similar to the access to local telephone lines from the Telecommunications Act of 1996).
- Modernize the electric grid, adding high-voltage long-distance trunk DC transmission lines, better control software, and battery storage facilities, so that solar and wind-generated electricity can be effectively generated when and where the sun and wind hit, and used when and where it is most needed. The estimated cost of this modernization is about the same as the 1-year oil and coal subsidy mentioned above, and as with the telecommunications modernization that led to our current Internet backbones, if access is guaranteed, private investment may pay for a significant portion of this cost.
- Subsidize efficiency and sustainability, ranging from home and building lighting/heating/insulation improvements to mass transit to organic food production.
- Jones and Kennedy believe this will not only improve the environment, but also significantly improve the economy. They cite examples of Sweden and Iceland, which have both significantly reduced their use of oil and coal, and whose economies are booming as a result. Jones also points out that many of the "green collar" jobs generated by these programs would pay a decent wage, be attainable by people with a high-school education (with a little training), and be impossible to outsource (things like installing solar panels and weatherizing buildings have to be done here in the US).
- Jones also advocates for an approach that is based on principles of equal protection and equal opportunity: making sure that this environmental movement includes, protects, and creates jobs in lower-income areas as well as among the more affluent.
President Obama apparently wants something very much like this plan to be put into effect, and the economic stimulus plan being signed today contains at least some of these ideas. I'll be interested to see what comes next.