Under both former President Bush and new President Obama, the U.S. government has vowed to reduce reliance on imported oil. The nation is encouraging development of a transportation fleet that uses biofuels, fuel cell vehicles and hybrid electric technologies.
Us Government Program To Reduce Reliance On Imported Oil
To that end, the federal government, in late 2008, put in place new incentives – and extended others – designed to create a strong up-tick in sales of unconventional vehicles. As a result, the U.S. Energy Information Administration anticipates that hybrid cars will grow from 2% of new light-duty vehicles sold in 2007 to 38% by 2030. (more…)
Biofuels are made from living matter, plant or animal, and are strongly favored by agricultural interests because of the large boost they bring to domestic farms. Most U.S. biofuels is made from corn (ethanol) or soybeans (biodiesel), although several unusual fuel sources are emerging, including algae and oil waste from deep-frying of foods. The biofuels industry experienced meteoric growth in 2005, 2006 and early 2007, but then it began to slow because of high feedstock prices. Private investment in biofuels finished off 2007 at $2.1 billion, according to ‘Global Trends in Sustainable Energy’, a report by New Energy Finance and United Nations Environmental program. (more…)
