Joe Biden making America green again

President Biden's pledge to increase renewable energy in America is now a race to safeguard the nation against a potential second Trump presidency, writes Patrick Drennan.

IN 2020, JOE BIDEN ran for president on the most ambitious climate action platform in U.S. history. Notably, he committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

The plan calls for the spending of USD$400 billion (AU$600 billion) on increased clean energy research and the construction of 500,000 new electric car charging stations by 2030. The proposal also required new buildings to slash emissions by 50% by 2035.

Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law in August 2022. The law invests hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy, electric vehicles and environmental justice.

It was – and is – ambitious, but it would never be easy.

Renewables race: Code red to go green for climate

Renewable energy has entered a new phase of even faster growth thanks to its energy security benefits. There is an opportunity now to leverage this momentum and turn it into a revolutionary moment.

What are the obstacles?

One of the biggest hurdles with green energy is that it’s a source of power you can’t control. Solar cells don’t work at night and wind turbines don’t work when there’s no wind. Transporting electricity over large distances is problematic. No matter how good your wiring, some of the energy being transferred will be converted into heat and lost.

There are of course ways to circumvent this. The technology exists to allow the power grid to both store large amounts of energy and transmit it long distances. This allows green energy to become viable, even without a coal power plant on standby. However, this is very expensive. The combination of solar, wind, energy storage and other technologies like tidal, hydrogen and geothermal energy, is renewable and unlimited.

Tax incentive hurdles

There is turmoil in the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry. Developers like Ørsted, BP and Equinor have sought to renegotiate or cancel contracts due to soaring costs. The Biden Administration's target of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030 will be difficult if this continues.

Meanwhile, some corporations are delaying investment decisions while awaiting the Treasury Department to craft rules on how the IRA's tax credits can be used.

Who are the opponents?

The main opposition comes from lobbyists. The coal, oil and gas lobby in the U.S. is powerful. Especially the influence of the billionaire Koch brothers, deeply invested in the fossil fuel industry and who donate to the Republican Party. Presidential hopeful Donald Trump has, apparently, asked the oil lobby for a billion dollars to fund his campaign.

It is unlikely that the oil companies will respond favourably and not just for ethical and legal reasons — they are drilling more oil under Biden than ever before, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

But also influence on the state level is very high. Lobby groups like the Texas Public Policy Foundation denigrate the scientific evidence of the influence of climate change over the last 50 years. Ironically, the more they drill, the less they sell (at sustainable prices).

Recently, Republican Scott D Sheffield, founder and longtime CEO of American oil producer Pioneer, allegedly attempted to collude with the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC — Russia and Saudi Arabia) to inflate oil prices.

Australia must learn lessons from Fukushima disaster

It is now a dozen years since the world held its breath and learned to pronounce the word Fukushima.

What about nuclear?

Many are calling for more nuclear fission power stations. The proponents claim they produce infinite clean energy, but there are three main issues they often disregard.

Firstly, nuclear fission power stations require great volumes of water and rivers and lakes across America are drying up. Secondly, they are prone to catastrophic environmental accidents such as in Chernobyl and Fukushima.

Finally, they produce uranium waste that is toxic for hundreds of years, even when buried deep underground. The transportation of this material is extremely hazardous.

AI tech billionaire Sam Altman has invested millions in miniature NuScale 77MW reactors, but the same issues remain (although they need less “heavy”/normal water). The real answer, according to New Scientist, will be nuclear fusion reactors, but they are probably a decade away.

What is the rest of the world doing?

Under the Renewable Energy Directive, the European Union has increased its 2030 renewable target from 32% to 42.5%. Sweden was the EU country that used the most renewable energy in 2022, according to a Eurostat report. Nearly two-thirds of its gross final energy consumption was derived from renewable sources.

Major economic competitors such as China are not inhibited by political opposition parties or local cultural or environmental challenges. China’s clean energy sector was the biggest driver of its GDP growth in 2023, contributing 40% (around $1.6 trillion) of its economic expansion. It is the world’s largest producer of solar PV cells. The United States can ignore this if it wishes and be left behind.

Unlocking the path toward a sustainable energy future

Grid flexibility measures and distributed energy resources are key elements for creating a more sustainable and reliable energy system.

What has the Biden Administration achieved?

The Biden Administration has been racing to finish to help safeguard it from potential reversal should former President Donald Trump win the 2024 Presidential Election.

The U.S. Energy Department unveiled complementary measures in April to make it easier for clean energy projects to connect to the grid. The Department said it will upgrade 100,000 miles of transmission lines over the next five years. The Environmental Protection Agency issued strict guidelines on coal-fired power stations.

Most U.S. states now get 17% of their energy from renewables. Fourteen states get 30% of their energy from renewables. In the first six months since the introduction of the IRA, 100,000 new green technology jobs were created, according to the World Economic Forum.

Georgia solar company Qcells invested US$2.5 billion (AU$3.7 billion) in Georgia to expand its solar panel manufacturing plant in Dalton. Biden’s biggest critic, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, celebrated the opening.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture allocated USD$238 million (AU$356 million) in funding to the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) and the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program (HBIIP). These small farm projects help to make America energy efficient.

For example, in Tennessee, Yarbro Farms used a USD$536,000 (AU$802,389) grant to install a 301.92-kilowatt ground-mounted solar array on its row crop farm. Oklahoma farmers sustain their fluctuating income with new wind turbines.

None of this would be happening without funding from the Biden Administration. Who would have thought that an 81-year-old son of a used-car salesman would become the champion of alternate energies?