Three key energy reforms Obama could order without Congress

It would obviously be better if the nation’s Senators and Representatives could act to reduce America’s dependence on oil, but in their failure there are still ways for the President to put in place lasting change by himself, by executive order.

William Becker, Executive Director of the PCAP, says: “Congress’s inability to cap U.S. carbon emissions contributed to the failure to reach a global climate treaty last year in Copenhagen, It now appears that Congress has failed again just months before international negotiators are set to reconvene.

“Congress has passed the ball back to President Obama,” adds Mr Becker. “He should run with it.”

Here are three key reforms that have been recommended by the Presidential Climate Action Project, a group of academic and think tank experts co-chaired by Retired Senator Gary Hart:

1. Set energy efficiency targets specific to industry sectors

President Obama could direct his Department of Energy to establish a series of energy efficiency targets up to 2035, specific to each industry sector, co-ordinating departmental resources to these goals, and backing it all up with a major national campaign to make America’s industry the most efficient in the industrialized world.

2. Set a carbon standard for transport fuels

Although there’s a Renewable Fuels Standard in place to require an increase in use of biofuels, another option would be to set a National Low Carbon Fuel Standard that requires refiners to reduce the carbon intensity of transport fuels by, for example, 5% in five years and 10% in 10 years. The Environmental Protection Agency could also set requirements for the efficiency of new cars to increase by 5% each year.

3. Stop subsidizing fossil fuels

While there are many regular denouncements of green energy subsidies from various interest groups, we were reminded by Bloomberg recently that fossil fuels enjoy 12 times the subsidy levels of renewable energy. President Obama could cut some of the $7 billion in handouts given each year for fossil fuels, perhaps after investigating which ones could be cut without significantly affecting the economy.

Among the other key recommendations from the Presidential Climate Action Project are setting out a proper national plan for clean energy, which might seem like a load more bureaucracy and paperwork, but could provide much clearer co-ordination for work by various federal agencies to cut dependence on oil.