Despite President Obama's call for a 50% increase in funding (a total of $2.77 billion) for renewable energy and energy efficiency research in his new budget proposal yesterday, it may not be enough. The U.S. spent $4.36 billion on non-defense energy research in 2012 but Ernest Moniz, nominee for Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, told the Senate during his confirmation hearing that "we are underinvesting [in energy research and development] by a factor of three."
The U.S.'s energy research spending is currently far below the International Energy Agency's (IEA) minimum recommendations. In fact, according to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation's (ITIF) Energy Innovation Tracker, Moniz's tripled spending recommendation is actually on the low end of expert consensus. Many believe a minimum of $15-$16 billion is needed while $30 billion is more ideal.
Take a look at this chart, which shows how much the U.S. spends on energy research and development (R&D) compared to other sectors. Despite the slight boost since Obama took office, energy R&D has taken a nosedive since the 1980s. Here's another chart, showing how little the U.S. spends on energy efficiency and renewable and nuclear energy research in comparison to fossil fuels. And here's one last chart showing the IEA's minimum and ideal energy research spending recommendations. As can be seen, the U.S. is not even close to meeting minimum expectations here.
It should come as no surprise as to why we need to invest in renewable and efficiency research today to secure our energy future tomorrow. BP's Statistical Review of World Energy June 2012 predicts that world reserves of oil and natural gas would not last much more than 50-60 years worth of global production. Meanwhile, experts predict the world will add another 1.2 billion people by 2030 while underserved rural areas and developing countries are just now beginning to modernize their electric infrastructure. To top off this disturbing cocktail, the world's climate is changing at an unpredictable clip.
So, to sum it all up, we need to drastically reduce emissions and cut reliance on fossil fuels while generating increasingly more energy at the same. Sir David King, Director of Research in Physical Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, calls this the "biggest challenge our civilization has ever had to face." He adds that we need to act now because it will take 30 years for us to see the benefits. His message is clear: if we do not innovate now, we may yet live to see the consequences of our inaction.
While spending far more on energy research may not sound appealing to politicians or taxpayers, innovations in energy storage alone will stabilize the energy grid and make renewable energy sources reliable. Obama is pouring limited resources into the right places, but the question remains—will it be enough?
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