February 05, 2010

American energy policy is a bit stop and go. While it's now centered on going green, the signals coming from Washington are always yellow and continually making participants hesitant to commit to long-term projects.

Relatively inexpensive hydrocarbons have fueled this country for decades. But spiraling prices along with concerns over air quality and dependence on foreign governments have forced policymakers to rethink this situation. That is what has propelled the renewable energy movement forward -- a condition that has led to the development of better and cheaper technologies, permitting those sustainable fuels a foothold in markets.

Below are a few letters received at EnergyBiz Insider on topics that appeared in the past few weeks. They capture the essence of how many readers say they feel.
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February 03, 2010

Renewable energy is making a gradual presence in this country. But the key question facing U.S. lawmakers is whether to mandate broad portfolio standards or whether to continue giving the states the authority to determine such measures.

The greening of America has a permanent place in the mindset of most citizens. And policymakers are keenly aware of this sentiment despite some concerns over rising costs and the creation of unrealistic goals. Through cooperative efforts that have involved all participants, state officials were first to require a certain percentage of utility portfolios to come from green fuels. Now, though, federal lawmakers are considering the same.

Marc Gunther: This is Marc Gunther for GreenBiz.com. I'm here today with Dan Yates. Dan is the founder and CEO of OPower. OPower is a company that helps people conserve energy, and we'll talk about that in a moment, but first a little about Dan. He's just 32, but he previously started and sold an educational software company, then spent about a year traveling with his girlfriend, now his wife, from the Arctic Circle in Alaska to the tip of South America. It was that adventure that led Dan to start OPower. Dan, first tell us why you started the company, and then please describe OPower. Tell us what you do.

Dan Yates: Thanks, Marc. Yeah. I started with my good friend and co-founder Alex Lasky, who is president of OPower. We started it very specifically to have a large scaled impact on emissions. I, in light of my background in information services, having started up a previous internet start-up, and Alex, with his background in politics and policy, surveyed the landscape looking at a bunch of different opportunities.

February 01, 2010

As President Obama rounds the corner and heads into the second year of his administration, he is discovering what nearly all of his predecessors have -- that voters become disenchanted during the midterm and tend to elect more of the opposition.

With that comes the challenge of how to enact what he and his supporters have determined to be the country's greatest priorities. To that end, Obama has not forsaken the issues to which he got elected. Instead, he has chosen to extend a hand to Republicans and Independents and offer them a chance to influence the course of history.