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-Coal (all types)- 492.7 billion short tons..Currently
54% (266 billion short tons)of the total is
considered recoverable with current mining techniques,but that can change
as new extraction
methods are developed.The United States consumes about 1 billion tons
of coal annually,which
means at current consumption rates (which may reduce if nuclear power
begins to offset coal in the
production of electricity)we have about 266 years of currently recoverable
coal left.
The United States not only imports crude oil,but refined gasoline (about
10% of our total gasoline
usage) from Venezuela,the Caribbean and Europe.These imports result from
limited refinery capacity.
The last new refinery to open in the United States was in 1976. Limited
refinery capacity results from
a number of factors including environmental opposition, highly restrictive
government regulations,and
market projections that suggest that oil usage will peak in about five
years, causing oil companies to
hesitate to build new refineries and get stuck with unused capacity. Limited
refinery capacity also
translates into low levels of gasoline stocks on hand during any given
week, which contributes directly
to linkage of gasoline prices at the pumps to the price of crude oil on
the world market. Additional
strain is placed on American refineries because of local fuel formulation
standards requiring scores of
unique formulations.
Nuclear power provides 19% of the electricity consumed in the United States.8
Coal remains the
largest sources of electrical power at 49% while natural gas fired electrical
plants provide 20% of our
electricity. With increasingly safe nuclear technology available and greatly
improved means of
recycling nuclear waste,there is no logical reason why nuclear technology
cannot produce virtually all
American electricity - freeing up natural gas and coal for other
uses..For example, safe and efficient
nuclear power provides 78% of France ’s electrical needs. There
are 103 licensed reactors at 65 sites in 31
states generating electricity at approximately 90% of capacity, yet no
new plants have opened in
nearly 30 years due to environmental opposition (remarkable given that
nuclear plants emit little or no
greenhouse gasses), safety concerns, controversy over nuclear waste, and
the “not in my backyard ”
syndrome. Beginning with the Energy Policy Act of 2005, however, the US
Government has taken
steps to encourage nuclear development and as of March 9, 2007, twelve
companies have announced
plans to file applications for development of 34 new units.9
National Security Issues:
1.
Dependence of foreign sources of energy (particularly oil and natural
gas) puts the United States at risk from foreign state owned oil companies.
Some of those nations, particularly Iran, provide significant funding
to terrorists including training and equipment for individuals killing
American and Iraqi soldiers in Iraq. Other nations, such as Saudi
Arabia, are home to individuals and organizations that provide support
and funding to terrorists. It is unconscionable that American dollars
spent of foreign oil end up resourcing terrorists intent on killing
us and destroying our way of life.
2. Importation of 10.10 million barrels of crude oil a day10
at $150 dollars per barrel means that the US is hemorrhaging $1,515,000,000
per day - contributing significantly to our international trade
deficit, weakening the dollar and placing ourselves at further national
security risk. The amount of money that we pay for foreign crude oil
in 67 days will fund the war in Iraq and Afghanistan for a year .11
A weakened dollar encourages investors and nations to divest. |
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8. “Net Generation by Energy Source by Type
of Produce ”, EIA, October 22, 2007
9. “Nuclear Power :Outlook for New U.S. Reactors ”, Congressional
Research Service, March 9, 2007
10 Ibid.
11 War funding estimate of $100 billion annually based on data available
in a Congressional Research Service report
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