GOOD NEWS FOR CONSERVATIONISTS
According to new polling data released Thursday. advancement of the Republican energy policy just doesn’t resonate with American voters. XL Keystone and crude exports don't fly with the people, who believe in climate change and want a greener policy.
The Senate has formally launched debate on legislation to authorize the Keystone XL pipeline, that also set the stage for weeks of arguments on climate change, crude exports and oil spills. Ted Cruz, senator from Texas and likely 2016 presidential contender, has started a push to end the decades-old ban on crude exports. The people want no part of it. 82% want to require oil companies to use oil from US public lands/offshore here, not export it.
The survey of 1,101 likely voters in early December, conducted for the Center for American Progress, shows that their energy and environmental priorities are more renewable energy, slashing dependence on foreign oil and cutting air pollution.
“What I think is striking about the poll is the degree to which Americans place a high value on environmental protection and especially on transitioning to renewable energy sources in coming years,” said Geoff Garin, president of Hart Research Associates, which conducted the survey. “It’s clear that efforts in the new Congress to promote an anti-environmental agenda designed to benefit fossil fuel corporations will be out of step with the priorities of most Americans.”
For instance, 65 percent of respondents said the federal government is doing too little to promote energy independence from foreign oil, and 57 percent said it was doing too little to promote the development of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. Fifty percent said there was too little action to reduce smog and other air pollution.
THE STUDY FOUND:
Promoting the development of renewable energurces is a leading item on the public’s energy agenda, and five in nine voters want the federal government to do more than it currently is to promote sources such as wind and solar power.
While voters support increased reliance on natural gas in the coming years,
by a two-to-one margin they put a higher priority on protecting public lands
and natural places from overdevelopment than on opportunities for oil and
natural gas drilling on public lands.
Two frames for setting energy policy have strong resonance with the public:
A BALANCED energy policy that addresses energy independence while
better protecting public health, public lands, and clean drinking water;
and
A CLEAN energy policy that promotes innovation and manufacturing
jobs while spending the transition to cleaner renewable forms of energy.
Both of these frames have stronger appeal than an “ALL OF THE ABOVE”
energy frame
READ THE ENTIRE REPORT HERE