Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the cost of the oil and the direct economic consequences of macroeconomic
shocks and transfers of wealth. Another more recent study estimated that oil
dependence in the United States exceeded US$500 billion for 2008 alone.
6
hese claims are supported by trade data. he United States purchases more
than 60% of its oil from foreign sources each year and the cost of petroleum
products is the single largest contributor—48%—to the country's US$700
billion trade deicit.
7
Supply costs aside, one study recently concluded that
the military costs in the Persian Gulf needed to protect oil assets and infra-
structure range from US$50 billion to $100 billion per year;
8
a second, inde-
pendent study put the igure at between US$29 billion and $80 billion per
year.
9
he United States is spending billions each year to protect a supply
chain that is in part responsible for inancing terrorist activities such as the
2001 attack on New York's World Trade Center buildings. In fact, the wealth
accrued by the family of Osama Bin Laden came largely from the provision
of infrastructure for oil operations in the Persian Gulf area. Understandably,
many energy policymakers now see the folly of preserving the status quo.
his chapter attempts to document the evolution of American energy
policy, particularly in regard to its inluence on wind power development.
Evidence suggests that a change is indeed afoot, but it will be a contested
afair. On the one hand, after two decades of hibernation, wind power
development in the United States is experiencing a reawakening. On the
other hand, there is vociferous political support in the United States to
exploit domestic shale gas reserves. In fact, the US Energy Information
Administration (USEIA) projects that shale gas production will increase
from 5.0 trillion cubic feet in 2010 to 13.6 cubic feet in 2035.
10
Moreover,
there are emerging indications that political support for nuclear power is on
the rise in the United States.
11
As this chapter will describe, the resurgence
of wind power is predominantly due to economic trends that are beginning
to cast wind power in a favorable light and altered perspectives regarding
what constitutes energy security.
his case study illustrates how changes to two or three STEP variables
can radically alter development trajectory. Historically, decisions about elec-
tricity generation have been made at the state or even municipal level with
federal incentives playing a linchpin role in elevating the pace of develop-
ment. As this chapter will document, the pace of wind power development
has historically been linked to the federal wind power production tax credit.
However, the recent decade long escalation of fossil fuel prices along with
progressive advances in wind power technology have improved the competi-
tiveness of wind power, allowing wind power developers to compete directly
with fossil fuel electricity generation providers in many states. Wind power
is now seen as a viable option for enhancing domestic energy security and
