Date: 1991-07-16
Speaker: PHILLIP BERRY (democrat)
Chamber: S

President. Sierra Club. Washington. DC. DEAR MR. BERRY: The comprehensive energy legislation recently approved by the Energy and Natural Resources Committee of the Senate does not merit the attack launched by the Sierra Club in its June 21. 1991. campaign letter to Senators. The bill. S. 1220. resulted from intensive analysis and Jutly 16. 1991 debate by twenty Senators representing a life Service at DOI has conducted over 200 broad cross section of political views. Seven- studies of the impact of possible energy deteen of those twenty Senators voted for this velopment on the biology and ecology of the legislation as a balanced approach to meet- coastal plain. and has concluded that this ing our energy and environmental chal- development will not jeopardize the coastal lenges. plain environment. so long as strict environFraming the current energy debate in the mental safeguards of the sort required by S. inflammatory language you have chosen 1220 are maintained. will produce neither a sensible energy policy An objective analysis of S. 1220 would not itmr increased environmental protection. support the conclusions expressed in your Reasonable people may well reach different letter of 21 June 1991. We trust you will reanswers in matters as important and com- consider your blanket condemnation of this plex as energy issues. but those who wish to legislation and instead work with Congress be a part of the energy policy debate have to improve those provisions which constian obligation to illuminate and clarify the tute specific and reasoned concerns for you issues rather than to misinform. and for your members. Your letter claims that S. 1220 "weakens This Congress has the best opportunity in laws designed to prevent construction of more than a decade to enact comprehensive unsafe reactors." That is simply not true. energy legislation that enhances our energy Nothing in S. 1220 would allow unsafe nu- security. improves environmental quality. clear reactors to be built or licensed. What protects consumers. and promotes a healthy S. 1220 would do is provide for more effe- economy. Let us debate the important issues tive public participation in the nuclear li- inherent in this legislation on the merits. censing process by providing the public with Sincerely. more complete information about nuclear JAMsS D. WATKns. plant design and operation up front. before Admira U.S. Navy (Retired). the plant is built. Your letter also claims that S. 1220 opens SERRA CLUB. a major loophole in the Clean Air Act Washington. DC. June 21. 1991. "which will worsen acid rain". The bills DEAR SENATOR: The Energy and Natural "WEPCO" provisions do not affect the cap Resources Committee has approved the placed on sulfur dioxide emissions by the JohnstonWallop comprehensive energy bill. Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. and S. 1220. This bill is an environmental disascannot. therefore. worsen acid rain. The ter. and we urge you to oppose it. We specifprovisions in S. 1220 will encourage utilities ically urge that you vote against a motion to to complete environmentally beneficial pol- invoke cloture in order to sustain a filibuslution control projects. including switching ter against S. 1220. to cleanerburning fuels. At a time when the American public is deS. 1220 does not. as you claim. override manding more environmental protection. the Clean Water Act. NEPA. or the Endan- the JohnstonWallop energy strategy weakgered Species Act. What the legislation does ens virtually every major national environis to demand greater coordination and disci- mental law and policy. S. 1220: pline on the part of the Federal agencies Weakens laws designed to prevent the that administer these statutes. Such disci- construction of unsafe nuclear power plants. pline will benefit consumers. the economy Opens a major loophole in the Clean Air and the environment. Act which will worsen acid rain and urban One of the most outlandish of all the smog.. claims made in your letter is that S. 1220 Overrides the Clean Water Act. the Na"eliminates state regulation of the utility in tional Environmental Policy Act. and the dustry." Reform of the Public Utility Hold- Endangered Species Act. ing Company Act. as contained within S. Weakens hazardous waste disposal re1220. will do no such thing. as any state reg- quirements of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. ulatory will tell you. Indeed. by fostering Eliminates state regulation of the utility broader competition in electricity genera- industry and makes it even more difficult tion. PUHCA reform will encourage use of for safe renewable energy sources to enter innovative technologies. including renew- the power grid. able technologies. Destroys one of the nations premier wflFinally. S. 1220 would not "destroy" the derness areasthe Arctic National Wildlife Nations "premier wilderness areasthe Refuge. and threatens other fragile coastal Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. . .. and other fragile coastal areas." First. with re- Moreover. the Energy Committee specifispect to "other coastal areas." the legisla- cally rejected measures which would have tion actually would place the coasts of Call- reduced our dependence on oil and protectfornia and New Jersey off limits to oil and ed the environment at the same time. The gas leasing until after the year 2000. The JohnstonWallop bill does nothing to iraAdministration does not support those provisions because they would extend the al- prove the efficiency of our automobiles. ready significant offshore leasing deferrals which account for almost half of our oil announced by the President in June 1990. consumption. annonedy. the Preidnteeisvote t 90 ao The JohnstonWallop bill is not an energy Secondly. the Committees vote to allow plc.I saws ito niomnal leasing and development of a small portion policy. It is a wish list of environmentally of te castl plin f AWR des ot dedestructive changes which the oil. nuclear. of the coastal plain of ANWR does not "doeand coal industries have sought for years. stroy" anything except the myths that have We urge you to defeat it. been propounded by those opposed to Sire you rs. ANWR development. Sincerely yours. In the 1980 legislation that expanded the PHIiP.Tp BERRY. Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from 9 soil- President. lion to 19 million acres. Congress specifical- MIEcuL iSeDc t. ly avoided designating a portion of the Executive Director coastal plain as a wilderness area. It directed instead that the Department of Interior (DOI) study the option of opening a part of SUMMARY OF KEY PROVISIONS IN S. 120. THE the coastal plain to oil and gas exploration. NATIONAL ENERGY SEcuRiTY AcT OF 1991 DOI reported to Congress in 1987. in the so- TRANSPORTATION AND ALTERNATIVE FUELS called 1002 Report. that resource develop- CAPE.-Our Nations transportation ment should be allowed on the nonwilder- sector uses 63 percent of the oil consumed ness section of the plain. under strict envi- in the United States. Several provisions in S. ronmental safeguards. The Fish and Wild- 1220 are intended to address this situation. Title III of the bill pertains to CAPE. It directs the Secretary of Transportation to adopt new CAFE standards based on specific assumptions. The Johnston CAPE amendment. which was offered in committee and which will again be offered when the full Senate considers the bill. would require the following standards for the automobile fleet as a whole: 30.2 MPG in 1996. 34.0 MPG in 2001. and 37.0 MPG in 2006. This compares with the current standard of 27.5 MPG. The standards in the Johnston amendment were developed in consultation with OTA and its contractor. Mr. K.G. Duleep. arguably the Nations foremost expert in this area. Car Scrappage Program.-S. 1220 would quadruple the amount of the fees to be collected from automobile manufacturers who fail to comply with the CAFE standards. Under the bill. these fees may be appropriated to fund State programs designed to take pre1980 cars off the road. This should result in both environmental and fuel economy benefits. Alternative Fuel Fleets.-S. 1220 contains an extensive alternative fuels fleets program. covering Federal. State and private fleets. The program requires that a specified percentage of replacement vehicles purchased be alternative fuel vehicles according to a set schedule. The program applies to all Federal fleets. and to State. municipal. and private fleet operators with 50 vehicles or more and at least one fleet of 20 or more vehicles in a metropolitan statistical area with a 1980 Census population of 250.000 or more. Certain exemptions are specified for military vehicles. emergency vehicles. and the like. Electric and ElectricHybrid Vehicle Program.-The bill contains an electric vehicle and electrichybrid vehicle research. development and demonstration program and authorizes the Secretary to issue guidelines and funding for State and local infrastructure development programs for these vehicles. Alternative FuelsThe legislation directs the Secretary of Energy to establish a program to promote the development and use of domestically produced replacement and alternative fuels. The Secretary is required to make demand estimates for such fuels and to seek voluntary supply commitments from fuel providers sufficient to meet demand. The bill gives the Secretary standby authority to prepare. in the event of a shortage. a plan to require providers of the fuel to make adequate domestic supplies available to the public. The plan is to lay before Congress for sixty days before it is implemented.