Virginia’s energy czar, Gov. Bob McDonnell, will begin his three day Conference on Energy in Richmond to discuss what the future of Virginia’s energy should be.
Gov. McDonnell claimed his short-term goal for the conference is promoting discussion targeted at enhancing low-cost energy production.
Over the long term, McDonnell says his aim is to create more jobs in Virginia. Officials say that he plans to do this by building wind turbines and nuclear-power equipment, servicing new offshore oil and gas fields from Hampton Roads to making biofuels in the southern portion of Virginia.
Here again the McDonnell administration has shown a short-sightedness in its policy goals that borders on gross negligence at best, or at worst, ignorance.
Few would argue that Virginia would benefit from a more diverse range of energy sources, greater amounts of energy from those sources, and more jobs for Virginians.
A one-dimensional focus on these goals, however, allows more room for energy sources like coal, natural gas, and oil to take more of the energy portfolio pie than is appropriate to sustain a healthy environment in Virginia.
Yes, in the short run, fossil fuel sources of energy will be cheaper. What the McDonnell administration seems unwilling to take into account however is the cost that must be associated with the pollution and ecological damage that is wrought by these dirty sources of energy. Taking these factors into account makes it clear that the costs of relying on fossil fuels for Virginia’s energy production are as archaic as the sources from which these fossil fuels come.
It is time now for a clean energy future that will provide more jobs for Virginian’s while providing a safer and cleaner living space for future generations of Virginian’s to enjoy.
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