Renewable energy: Renewing the environment
- National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)
During the past 20 years, the United States has enacted some of the world`s most comprehensive legislation to protect and preserve its environmental heritage. These regulations have spawned a $$115-billion-per-year industry for {open_quotes}green{close_quotes} products and services, with more than 35,000 companies providing jobs for American workers. On the other hand, environmental regulations have placed heavy cost burdens on many U.S. businesses as they struggle to remain competitive in both domestic and foreign markets. How, then, can one reconcile the growing need for environmental protection with the desire for a stronger, healthier economy? Even as Congress debates the value of existing environmental legislation, new threats are appearing on the horizon. For example, extensive storm damage from Hurricane Andrew and other natural disasters has prompted members of the $$650-billion insurance industry to begin studying the effects that global warming may have on future property damage claims. More and more people are realizing that the most efficient and economical way to control pollution is to avoid creating it in the first place. And that`s where renewable energy comes in. Technologies based on nonpolluting renewable energy sources such as sunlight and wind can help preserve our environmental heritage without a tangled web of regulations to burden industry. Renewable energy technologies can also help the United States become a world leader in a potential $400-billion-a-year global market for environmentally friendly products.
- OSTI ID:
- 466643
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-960490--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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