Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is pushing to get Congress to pass climate and energy legislation. In a column published Monday, Vilsack says America can no longer rely on energy sources that are growing increasingly difficult to find and utilize. He adds we cannot accept an energy future that allows oil producers, whether they are controlled by a foreign state or a corporate board, to dictate how we will power this country. Vilsack says we must take back control of our energy security and energy independence. According to Vilsack the costs of maintaining the status quo are too high.
The Secretary notes the tragedy of Deepwater Horizon will have a lasting impact over many years and shows us the worst possible result of America's dependence on oil. He says the tremendous economic and environmental costs of the Gulf oil spill make more apparent than ever the need to make the President's vision a reality. That vision is to move America toward a new energy future and build a 21st-century clean energy economy.
Secretary Vilsack also says a failure to embrace renewable energy represents a lost economic opportunity for the nation, particularly for rural America. He says our farms, forests, fields and oceans are a wellspring of clean energy resources just waiting to be tapped. As we work to utilize alternative energy sources, Vilsack says farmers and ranchers can benefit from new markets for bioenergy crops and agricultural byproducts, including those produced on land that is marginal for production of traditional crops.
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