Pickens Plan
Encyclopedia
Energy policy
Energy policy is the manner in which a given entity has decided to address issues of energy development including energy production, distribution and consumption...
proposal announced July 8, 2008 by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman T. Boone Pickens. Pickens wants to reduce American dependence on imported oil by investing approximately $US
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 trillion in new wind turbine farms
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
for power generation, which he believes would allow the natural gas currently used for power generation to be shifted to fuel CNG trucks and other heavy vehicles. Pickens thinks that his plan could reduce by $300 billion (43%) the amount the country spends annually on foreign oil.
Proposal
The main proposals of the plan are:- Private industry would fund and install thousands of wind turbineWind turbineA wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s in the Great PlainsGreat PlainsThe Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
, which Pickens refers to as the potential "wind corridor" of the United States due to favorable wind resources and geographic location. Pickens estimates that these turbines could generate enough power to provide 20 percent or more of the country's electricity supply. - Government would pay for electric power transmission lines to connect the turbine farms to the power grid. They would provide energy to the Midwest, South and Western regions of the country.
- With wind energy providing a large portion of the nation's electricity, the natural gas that is currently used to fuel power plants would be used instead as a fuel for thousands of vehicles. To increase efficiency, the Plan puts an emphasis on natural gas-burning fleets of trucks and buses. Thus, the demand for petroleum products made from imported oil would be reduced.
Timetable
Pickens thinks his plan that would provide 22% of electricity from wind power and the conversion for vehicles from gasoline to gas could be accomplished in less than 10 years with the right leadership. However, according to Chuck McGowin, senior project manager at the Electric Power Research InstituteElectric Power Research Institute
The Electric Power Research Institute conducts research on issues related to the electric power industry in USA. EPRI is a nonprofit organization funded by the electric utility industry. EPRI is primarily a US based organization, receives international participation...
, a nonprofit organization funded by the electric power industry, the time table is too tight. Dave Hamilton, director for global warming and energy projects at the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
agrees "That is extremely aggressive ... But it's in the right direction. It's a good thing we have an oilman saying we can't drill our way out of this problem." Former U.S. vice president Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
, who has spent recent years informing people about global warming, opines that all electricity generation should be completely fossil-fuel free in the next 10 years.
Wind power status and potential
Wind power had been experiencing exponential growthExponential growth
Exponential growth occurs when the growth rate of a mathematical function is proportional to the function's current value...
in the United States for several years when Pickens announced his plan. Wind power in the large state of Texas
Wind power in Texas
Wind power in Texas consists of many wind farms with a total installed nameplate capacity of 10,223 MW from over 40 different projects. Texas produces the most wind power of any U.S. state, followed by Iowa with 3,708 MW...
grew very rapidly, 2400% from 1999 to 2007. In another large state, California, wind generation increased by 48% in the same period. The cost of wind power generation has decreased by about 80% over the last 20 years because of technological advances and is now cost-competitive with other energy sources. Wind-generated electricity can be produced at 5 to 6 cents per kWh.
A yardstick used to determine locations with high potential wind energy production is referred to as Wind Power Density (WPD). It is a calculation relating to the effective force of the wind at a particular location, frequently expressed in terms of the elevation above ground level over a period of time. It takes into account wind velocity and mass. Color coded maps are frequently prepared for a particular area described, for example, as "Mean Annual Power Density at 50 Meters." The results of the above calculation are entered into an index developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory , located in Golden, Colorado, is the United States' primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is a government-owned, contractor-operated facility; it is funded through...
and referred to as "NREL CLASS." The larger the WPD calculation, the higher it is rated by class.
The Pickens Plan calls for increasing the installed wind power capacity by at least a factor of ten from its 2008 level by 2018. This would tap only a small fraction of total U.S. wind power potential, which is estimated to be as much as 16 times more than the year-2005 electricity demand in the United States.
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Effects on the environment
Combustion
Combustion or burning is the sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidant accompanied by the production of heat and conversion of chemical species. The release of heat can result in the production of light in the form of either glowing or a flame...
to carbon neutral wind generation
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
, Pickens' Plan would significantly reduce carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
emissions from electricity production. Although vehicles powered by combusting natural gas instead of gasoline would still produce , they would produce about 25% less for the same amount of energy. Combustion of gasoline also produces much larger amounts of nitrogen oxides (NOx, which cause smog
Smog
Smog is a type of air pollution; the word "smog" is a portmanteau of smoke and fog. Modern smog is a type of air pollution derived from vehicular emission from internal combustion engines and industrial fumes that react in the atmosphere with sunlight to form secondary pollutants that also combine...
) and other air pollutants than combustion of natural gas.
Power generation and transmission lines
Institute for Energy Research
The Institute for Energy Research , is a Houston, Texas-based company that conducts intensive research and analysis on the functions, operations, and government regulation of global energy markets....
(IER), an organization that is funded by the oil industry, disagrees. The IER claims that Pickens' plan relies on government subsidies and that producing large amounts of wind power is not a viable option. Instead, the IER advocates "less government for more abundant and affordable energy."
Pickens acknowledges that natural gas would still be required for peak electricity demand and additional infrastructure would be needed to distribute the wind energy across the country. New transmission lines, worth $64 billion to $128 billion, would be needed to carry the power from the windmills to the cities. Pickens testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee and said the government should begin building transmission lines for wind-generated power in the same way that President Eisenhower did by declaring an emergency to build the interstate highway system in the 1950s and 1960s. As an alternative, Pickens proposed that the government should provide the right of way on private land and extend tax credits so the private sector can build the lines. Kenneth Medlock III, an energy fellow at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy and a critic of Pickens' Plan, said "A lot of what he's trying to do is add value to a stranded asset."
Despite the recession, Denver oil man Philip Anschutz is moving forward with the construction of a wind farm in southern Wyoming and a 900 miles (1,448.4 km) transmission line to Phoenix, Las Vegas and Southern California.
Intermittency
One of the challenges with using wind to replace natural gas is the intermittent nature of wind energy, since the same wind conditions are not always present. But Sierra Club's Dan Becker, director of the Sierra Club's energy program, does not believe this problem is a major issue. He said that technological advances will allow several wind farms from varying regions of the country to be tied together in the same electricity grid. When some are idle, others could make up the difference.According to a 2007 study by Archer & Jacobson published in the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, interconnecting ten or more widely-separated wind farms allows 33 to 47% of the total energy produced (15–20% of nominal capacity) to be used as reliable, baseload electric power, as long as minimum criteria are met for wind speed and turbine height.
To dispatch power when the wind isn't blowing, backup power plants would be needed, according to Paul Fremont, an electric-utility analyst at the investment bank Jefferies & Co. Natural gas plants can quickly be brought online to supply peaking capacity during periods of low wind or peak demand. According to Art Holland, a director at Pace Global Energy Services, the US will need to replace 140,000 MW of gas plant capacity over the next 10 years due to plant retirements. This translates to twice as much wind capacity due to the difference in capacity factor
Capacity factor
The net capacity factor or load factor of a power plant is the ratio of the actual output of a power plant over a period of time and its potential output if it had operated at full nameplate capacity the entire time...
s.
Instead of dispatching additional power generation, energy could be conserved on demand. The Smart power grid
Smart Power Grid
A smart grid is a digitally enabled electrical grid that gathers, distributes, and acts on information about the behavior of all participants in order to improve the efficiency, reliability, economics, and sustainability of electricity services.Smart grid policy is organized in Europe as Smart...
, an intelligent power distribution network currently being researched and developed, can reduce power consumption at the client side
Energy demand management
Energy demand management, also known as demand side management , is the modification of consumer demand for energy through various methods such as financial incentives and education...
during peak hours and thereby lessen our dependence on gas for load following
Load following power plant
A load following power plant is a power plant that adjusts its power output as demand for electricity fluctuates throughout the day. Load following plants are typically in-between base load and peaking power plants in efficiency, speed of startup and shutdown, construction cost, cost of electricity...
.
Storing electricity
Grid energy storage
Grid energy storage refers to the methods used to store electricity on a large scale within an electrical power grid. Electrical energy is stored during times when production exceeds consumption and the stores are used at times when consumption exceeds production...
is currently significantly more expensive than using dispatchable generation
Dispatchable generation
Dispatchable generation refers to sources of electricity that can be dispatched at the request of power grid operators; that is, generating plants that can be turned on or off, or can adjust their power output on demand...
, but it can be done. Wind energy can be stored by pumping water uphill
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used by some power plants for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. Low-cost off-peak electric power is used to run the pumps...
when the wind is blowing, and then releasing it through turbine generators when the electricity is needed. TVA's Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant
Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant
Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant is a pumped-storage hydroelectric underground power station in Marion County, just west of Chattanooga in the U.S. state of Tennessee.The facility is owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority...
near Chattanooga, TN is just one example of many such installations that already exist in the US. Another option is to uprate the peak generating capacity of existing hydroelectric dams by adding more generator units; this allows a hydroelectric plant to buffer the variable output of wind farms on the grid, by accumulating river water during periods of strong winds, and releasing extra water when winds are calm and power demand is high. A dam that impounds a large reservoir can store and release large amounts of water by adjusting the reservoir level within a few meters.
Compressed-air energy storage is another energy storage mechanism. When there is excess electrical energy production, air is compressed and stored in a limestone cavern. Then when the energy is needed again, the compressed air generates electricity by blowing through a turbine. Vanadium redox batteries
Vanadium redox battery
The vanadium redox battery is a type of rechargeable flow battery that employs vanadium ions in different oxidation states to store chemical potential energy...
are being used to store energy and level loads from wind generation projects. The excess energy is stored chemically in different ionic forms of vanadium in a dilute sulphuric acid electrolyte. The reaction can be reversed, which allows the battery to be charged, discharged and recharged.
Making the transition
James Baker Institute
The James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, often shortened to Baker Institute, is a think tank on the campus of Rice University in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1993, it has become a notable center of public policy research. It is named for James Baker, former United States Secretary of State...
at Rice University, says that the US will continue to use natural gas for electric power generation. Natural gas burns cleaner than coal, making it an increasingly popular fuel for power plants. Gas plants also produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions.
The technology needed for Compressed Natural Gas
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
(CNG) vehicles such as City buses, fork lifts and passenger cars with CNG drivetrains is available now. Honda sells the Civic GX
Honda Civic GX
The Honda Civic GX is a passenger car factory-built to run on compressed natural gas . The GX is based on the Honda Civic and is available for fleet sales in all 50 states in the US...
, with a 170 miles (273.6 km) range. In addition, it is possible to convert vehicles to run on CNG in addition to leaving the conventional fuel injection intact, allowing the driver to switch back and forth at will. Kits are available for the do-it-yourselfer. One can buy a CNG compressor called Phill that hooks up to the city natural gas line making it possible to refuel a CNG car at home.
On the other hand, the IER believes that natural gas vehicles are "a niche product." Patricia Monahan, believes "It's going to be a big price tag" to switch to CNG vehicles. Monahan considers CNG an excellent fuel for running small fleets of vehicles which log heavy mileage per vehicle, such as buses and garbage trucks. Vehicles which use large amounts of fuel realize savings more quickly from the lower price of CNG relative to diesel.
In November 2008, Pickens changed his position stating that he wants heavy trucks, not cars running on natural gas. Rich Kolodziej, President of NGVAmerica
NGVAmerica
NGVAmerica is a national organization that is committed to the development and commercialization of vehicles powered by natural gas or hydrogen, which are key alternatives to petroleum...
, says the very limited distribution network for natural gas is currently available in only 1,200 out of 190,000 gas stations would better serve commercial fleets and long-haul trucks.
Renewable Portfolio Standards
Twenty-four states plus the District of Columbia have Renewable Portfolio StandardRenewable Portfolio Standard
A Renewable Portfolio Standard is a regulation that requires the increased production of energy from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal...
s in place to set targets for renewable energy in those states. Four more states have set non-binding energy targets.
Funding
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 created the Clean Renewable Energy Bond (CREB) program, effectively offering interest-free debt to eligible renewable projects. In October 2008, the CREB program was extended to March 6, 2009.Since July 2008, Pickens’ Dallas-based investment firm, BP Capital, has lost as much as $2 billion as a result of the falling stock market and credit crunch. Pickens may have lost around $300 million of his personal funds.
Cost of wind vs. natural gas
According to Jerry Taylor, senior fellow at the Cato InstituteCato Institute
The Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
, using wind to generate most of the nation's electricity would undoubtedly result in higher retail electric rates because wind power is twice as expensive as natural gas-fired generation "and probably more if you take out the subsidies." However, the American Wind Energy Association
American Wind Energy Association
Formed in 1974, the American Wind Energy Association is a Washington, D.C.-based national trade association representing wind power project developers, equipment suppliers, service providers, parts manufacturers, utilities, researchers, and others involved in the wind industry.With over 2,500...
points out that the cost of wind power has dropped by more than 90% in the last 20 years and expects the cost to continue to decline as the industry matures. In contrast, the cost of natural gas is expected to rise. Moreover, the effects on the environment and public health for natural gas are estimated to cost some 0.5 to 2 cents per kWh. Similar costs from wind are marginal.
Peak gas
Peak gas
Peak gas is the point in time at which the maximum global natural gas production rate is reached, after which the rate of production enters its terminal decline. Natural gas is a fossil fuel formed from plant matter over the course of millions of years. It is a finite resource and thus considered...
. US gas production peaked in 1973 at about 24.1 trillion cubic feet, declined until 1985, and has been slowly increasing over the last 23 years. (see figure on left). According to peak theory, the rate of production enters a terminal decline
Gas depletion
Gas depletion is the inescapable result of extracting and consuming natural gas since it is a nonrenewable natural resource. The number of years of natural gas left is estimated by the ratio of proven natural gas reserves to the current consumption rate....
after the peak. Peak gas has already been confirmed by Exxon's CEO Lee Raymond. In 2005 he said to Reuters that "Gas production has peaked in North America." The Reuters article continues to say "While the number of U.S. rigs drilling for natural gas has climbed about 20 percent over the last year and prices are at record highs, producers have been struggling to raise output." John DeCicco, a senior fellow at Environmental Defense
Environmental Defense
Environmental Defense Fund or EDF is a United States–based nonprofit environmental advocacy group. The group is known for its work on issues including global warming, ecosystem restoration, oceans, and human health...
, is critical of the plan because it assumes that gas would remain cheap despite growing demand and increasing reliance on imports as evidenced by proposals for LNG terminals.
However, implementing Pickens Plan does not require an increase in the supply of natural gas; it calls for a shift in its use, rather than an increase. Natural gas production has been slightly and consistently increasing in the United States for more than two decades. Proven recoverable U.S. gas reserves have slightly but consistently risen since 1996 and are about the same as in 1976. Estimates of technically recoverable reserves in the United States vary as they are generated by geological inferences, but the U.S. Energy Information Administration
Energy Information Administration
The U.S. Energy Information Administration is the statistical and analytical agency within the U.S. Department of Energy. EIA collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and...
2009 estimate for technically recoverable natural gas reserves is 1747 trillion cubic feet, enough to provide domestic production at 2005 rates for nearly 80 years.
Nuclear power vs. wind power
Pickens' plan will require the construction of large scale wind farms to generate electricity. Critical of the plan, the National Center for Public Policy ResearchNational Center for Public Policy Research
The National Center for Public Policy Research, founded in 1982, is a self-described conservative think tank in the United States. Its president since its founding has been Amy Ridenour. David A. Ridenour, her husband, is vice president, and David W. Almasi is executive director...
, a self described conservative think tank, asserts that nuclear power plants would be a better alternative than the wind farms. They say that nuclear power is also environmentally sound and creates very little waste, that nuclear power is also far cheaper than wind power, and that to build the wind farms would take many square miles of land.
Electricity vs. natural gas for powering vehicles
Electric car
An electric car is an automobile which is propelled by electric motor, using electrical energy stored in batteries or another energy storage device. Electric cars were popular in the late-19th century and early 20th century, until advances in internal combustion engine technology and mass...
. Wind generated electricity could directly fuel America’s ever-more electrified transport sector. Some hybrid owners argue the part that using compressed natural gas as a transportation fuel does not make sense especially when the new wave of electric and hybrid-electric vehicles that are expected to hit the market in the coming years. The US government is already promoting the adoption of PHEVs and EVs. The $700 billion bailout bill signed by President Bush in 2008 includes tax credits up to $7,500 for US buyers of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Pickens does not believe that all electric vehicles are viable, especially trucks. In his plan natural gas primarily replaces diesel fuel. Pickens frequently makes the statement that "the battery won't move an eighteen wheeler" although batteries, electric drivetrain, and engines for heavy vehicles exist in hybrid buses
Hybrid electric bus
A hybrid electric bus combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. These type of buses normally use a diesel-electric powertrain and are also known as hybrid diesel-electric buses....
and a hybrid version of the military's HEMTT heavy lift vehicle
Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck
The Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck series is a range of eight-wheel drive diesel-powered off-road capable trucks, used by the US military. Formally described as "Truck, Cargo: 10-Ton, 8x8", it has been nicknamed the "Dragon Wagon". HEMTT trucks first went into service with the U.S...
. The Port of Los Angeles and South Coast Air Quality Management District have demonstrated a short-range heavy-duty electric truck manufactured by Balqon Corporation (http://www.balqon.com) capable of hauling a fully loaded 40 feet (12.2 m) cargo container. The current design is capable of pulling a 60,000-pound cargo container at speeds up to 40 mph and has a range of between 30 and 60 miles. William Tahil of Meridian International Research acknowledges that hybrid or completely electric long-haul semi-trucks are technically possible, but poses the question if there is enough lithium carbonate
Lithium carbonate
Lithium carbonate is a chemical compound of lithium, carbon, and oxygen with the formula Li2CO3. This colorless salt is widely used in the processing of metal oxides and has received attention for its use in psychiatry. It is found in nature as the rare mineral zabuyelite.-Properties:Like almost...
production currently to support the production of the needed batteries.
Gore's Global Warming vs. Pickens Plan
The plans of T. Boone Pickens and Al Gore have some similarities - each lessens the dependence on fossil fuels - but differ in their eventual goals. Pickens specifically wants to see energy securityEnergy security
Energy security is a term for an association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven distribution of energy supplies among countries has led...
by increasing the use of domestic energy sources including fossil fuels while Gore wants to eliminate the burning of fossil fuels altogether to stop global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
. Pickens claims to have a plan that could accomplish this with existing technology, while Gore advocates new research to reduce costs. A study by the European Renewable Energy Council
European Renewable Energy Council
The European Renewable Energy Council was founded in 2000 by the European renewable energy industry, trade and research associations. EREC is located in the Renewable Energy House in Brussels, a monument protected building with 100% renewable energy supply for heating and cooling.EREC acts as a...
states that the burning of fossil fuels for energy could be eliminated globally by 2090 using existing technology, and earlier for western nations.
Dependence on foreign fuels
According to Jerry Taylor, senior fellow at the Cato Institute
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
, is that "foreign oil is not bad; it is good." The US is now importing about 70% of its oil needs annually because it is cheaper than other forms of energy. Taylor says that if compressed natural gas is the best option for transportation fuel then "the markets will see it," and over time CNG could outperform gasoline as a cheaper transportation fuel.
Questions over Pickens' motives and methods
Many critics of the Pickens Plan highlight ways that Pickens could potentially benefit personally from the plan. For instance, Pickens owns the water rights to a huge ancient aquifer in the Texas Panhandle and overall owns more water than anyone else in the U.S. Increasing water demands and drought may make cities in the Great Plains willing to purchase water at high prices. Implementing Pickens Plan would give him rights to build electric transmission lines, and by getting a wider right of way it would allow Pickens to build water pipelines.This exploitation has already happened in Texas, where Pickens is building a wind farm that will bring electricity to Dallas, Texas. The proposed pipeline would have followed the same 250 miles (402.3 km) corridor as the electric transmission lines from the wind farms, which was to be seized for utility use from private owners through eminent domain. Many Texas landowners and legislators denounced the plan, particularly the fact that it allowed eminent domain to be exercised by an agency consisting only of T. Boone Pickens's employees. In September 2008, the water pipeline was suspended. T. Boone Pickens continues to purchase water rights in the Great Plains and has plans to build more, smaller wind farms.
T. Boone Pickens would be in an excellent position to benefit financially if the plan is implemented. His hedge fund, BP Capital, is highly invested in wind and natural gas enterprises. He is the majority stockholder of Clean Energy, the largest supplier of natural gas for vehicles in the United States.
In rebuttal to many critics' opposition, Pickens insists his interest is more in the country's future, than his personal wealth. Possibly as a move against such accusations, Pickens has donated over $700 million to philanthropic causes. In the last few years, he has often been on the Chronicle of Philanthropys list of top U.S. philanthropists. Still, there are some who are uneasy about a man who made millions in the oil business advocating clean energy:
Support campaign
Pickens announced that he would spend $58 million on a multi-media effort to promote his proposal, through both old mediaOld media
The Old Media or Legacy Media are traditional means of communication and expression that have existed since before the advent of the new medium of the Internet...
(such as newspapers and television), and new media (including YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, and the creation of a new social network on the Pickens Plan website). As part of this effort, Pickens has appeared on many American news programs and talk shows, such as The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
PBS NewsHour is an evening television news program broadcast weeknights on the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States. The show is produced by MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, a company co-owned by former anchors Jim Lehrer and Robert MacNeil, and Liberty Media, which owns a 65% stake in the...
, Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
, Fox News and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Pickens is aided by his spokesperson Jay Rosser and political ad firm Joe Slade White
Joe Slade White
Joe Slade White is a Democratic political strategist and media consultant. His past clients have included Presidential candidates, U.S. Senators, Governors, Members of Congress, and Mayors, as well as statewide and local initiatives throughout the country.-Career:At the age of 21, White was hired...
& Co.
To raise political support, Pickens planned to organize supporters by Congressional districts. He also met with the main party candidates for the 2008 United States Presidential election
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
to discuss his plan. He met with John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
on August 15, 2008, and with Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
on August 17, 2008.
In October 2008, Pickens announced that the one millionth person had signed up to support his plan, and that two U.S. Senators, 37 U.S. Congressmen and nine governors had pledged "to enact an energy plan that reduces our foreign oil dependence by at least 30% within ten years." A year later, another 600,000 people had signed up to support the plan.
Major endorsements
Carl PopeCarl Pope
Carl Pope is the former Executive Director of the Sierra Club, an American environmental organization founded by conservationist John Muir in 1892. Pope was appointed to his position as Executive Director in 1992, and served until January 20, 2010, when he was succeeded by Michael Brune...
, executive director of the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
, has expressed support for the Pickens Plan and stated “To put it plainly, T. Boone Pickens is out to save America”. Former Clinton White House Chief of Staff and current President of the Center for American Progress
Center for American Progress
The Center for American Progress is a progressive public policy research and advocacy organization. Its website states that the organization is "dedicated to improving the lives of Americans through progressive ideas and action." It has its headquarters in Washington D.C.Its President and Chief...
John Podesta
John Podesta
John David Podesta was the fourth and final White House Chief of Staff under President Bill Clinton, from 1998 until 2001. He is the president of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in Washington, D.C., and is also a Visiting Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law...
supports the plan. Barack Obama has stated he supports many elements of the plan. The American Lung Association
American Lung Association
The American Lung Association is a voluntary health organization whose mission is to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease.-History:...
endorses the Pickens Plan. Former Republican Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford
Mark Sanford
Marshall Clement "Mark" Sanford Jr. is an American politician from South Carolina, who was the 115th Governor of South Carolina from 2003 to 2011....
supports the Pickens Plan.
See also
- Compressed natural gasCompressed natural gasCompressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
- Electricity generationElectricity generationElectricity generation is the process of generating electric energy from other forms of energy.The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday...
- Energy use in the United StatesEnergy use in the United StatesThe United States is the 2nd largest energy consumer in terms of total use in 2010 . The U.S. ranks seventh in energy consumption per-capita after Canada and a number of small countries....
- Super gridSuper gridA super grid is a wide area transmission network that makes it possible to trade high volumes of electricity across great distances. It is sometimes also referred to as a "mega grid".-History:...
- Nolan County, Texas
- Pampa Wind ProjectPampa Wind ProjectMesa Power, a company controlled by former Texas oilman, T. Boone Pickens, planned to build the world's largest wind farm, called the Pampa Wind Project, as part of the Pickens Plan. The proposed 4,000 MW facility was to be located near Pampa, Texas, which is on the Texas Panhandle, and...
- Peak gasPeak gasPeak gas is the point in time at which the maximum global natural gas production rate is reached, after which the rate of production enters its terminal decline. Natural gas is a fossil fuel formed from plant matter over the course of millions of years. It is a finite resource and thus considered...
- Wind powerWind powerWind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
- Wind power in TexasWind power in TexasWind power in Texas consists of many wind farms with a total installed nameplate capacity of 10,223 MW from over 40 different projects. Texas produces the most wind power of any U.S. state, followed by Iowa with 3,708 MW...
- Wind power in the United StatesWind power in the United StatesAs of the third quarter of 2011, the cumulative installed capacity of wind power in the United States was 43,461 megawatts , making it second in the world, behind China. In 2010 wind power accounted for 2.3% of the electricity generated in the United States...
- Juhl Wind, Inc. (www.juhlwind.com)
External links
- Pickens Plan
- Time Is Money, About Half a Million Dollars a Minute by T. Boone Pickens, The Huffington Post, June 8, 2009
- Voices of Oklahoma interview with T. Boone Pickens. First person interview conducted on August 6, 2010 with T. Boone Pickens. Original audio and transcript archived with Voices of Oklahoma oral history project.