Can Congress pull it off?

It appears that the U.S. House of Representatives will not be voting on an amendment to establish a national renewable electricity standard (RES) — aka renewable portfolio standard, or RPS — until after the August recess, if at all. The critically important amendment, to be offered by Representatives Tom Udall (Democrat – New Mexico) and Todd Platts (Republican – Pennsylvania), calls for 20 percent of the nation's energy to come from renewable sources, such as wind and solar energy, by the year 2020.

Advocates hoped the vote would be held before the recess began — and in the face of well-financed opposition, organizations such as the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) launched media campaigns to focus public pressure on swing votes in the House. But with Congress heading out for its summer break at the end of the day, the odds of the measure reaching the floor are slim to none, AWEA representative Christine Real de Azua told ArcWire.

While more than 20 states have enacted successful renewable electricity standards, resistance to a national standard has been fierce — even though seeking renewable alternatives to petroleum and coal would seem to be a no-brainer. According to studies cited by the AWEA, a 20 percent RES would cut CO2 emissions by 15 percent — equivalent to taking nearly 71 million cars off the road. For those who vote with their pocketbooks, energy research firm Wood Mackenzie found that by facilitating the switch to renewable energy, an RES would lower demand - and thus prices - for natural gas and electricity. And while meeting a Renewable Energy Standard of 15% by 2020 could require investing more than $100 billion dollars, the lower prices will save American consumers $240 billion over that same amount of time.

In addition to the environmental benefits of using clean energy, the $10 billion dollars a year we save can be invested in developing a green economy, and weaning ourselves from polluting and dangerous sources of energy like coal and nuclear power. Indeed, as the petroleum economy begins to peter out, wind and solar energy are also likely to be a big source of new manufacturing jobs. In fact, a recent study by the Union of Concerned Scientists concluded that achieving a 20 percent RES by 2020 (as specified by the Udall-Platt amendment) would create more than 185,000 new American jobs. And the AWEA notes that farmers and rural land owners in windy areas are pulling in between $3,000 and $8,000 per turbine annually — a windfall when harvests are good, and a potential lifeline in years when drought or flooding push agricultural production into the red.

Will such dollars-and-cents arguments prevail over greased palms and old-school lobbying? That depends in large part on public awareness — and public willingness to hold legislators accountable once Congress is back in session.