Michigan — September 19, 2008 at 7:05 am

Taking the Lead in Alternative Energy

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Michigan’s forward-thinking Democratic governor, Jennifer Granholm, has shepherded through legislation requiring a doubling in the amount of renewable energy supplied by the major power utilities. By doing this she is blazing a new path to creating markets for green energy that will benefit our ailing state and the country as a whole. It is THIS kind of investment that is being promoted by Senator Obama and Michigan is going to be a large beneficiary of his administration’s energy policies when he is elected in 2008.

It takes a visionary leader to weather the slings and arrows coming from the fossil-fuel dinosaur-thinking of many in our state. AS you can see from the linked article’s headline, for many this is simply a way to raise our rates. But by creating a market for renewable energy, Gov. Granholm is taking the necessary steps to push this fledgling industry into the forefront. Here’s why Michigan can do it:

  • With more coastline than Florida, Michigan is primed to be a major supplier of wind energy.
  • We have new biodiesel plants in place and being built and plenty of land to grow crops to supply them.
  • We have several major universities to supply the research facilities and, more importantly, the researchers to develop the technologies that will be common place in the not-too-distant future.
  • We have infrastructure in place to fulfill the manufacturing needs of this new industry.
  • We have a large, skilled workforce and, leading the nation in unemployment, we have a very motivated workforce. Properly retrained for new, emerging industries, these workers will build the solar energy systems, the wind energy systems, the new battery systems, the tidal energy systems, and the biofuels production facilities that will help pull Michigan out of its economic hole.
  • Proximity to the heart of the automotive industry will help bring together the new energy technologies like battery and hydrogen fuel cell systems that will power tomorrow’s automobiles.
  • It takes courage to take steps like Governor Granholm has done but she is doing Michigan a very big favor and, along with Senator Obama in the White House, their vision may be the very thing that saves our state from the follies of the automotive industry.

    And for that, I am thankful.

    I’m just sayin’…

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