Nov 14 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Sharon Smith The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa.

 

When Gov. Ed Rendell first took office in 2003, the price of a barrel of oil was about $30.

Those days are long gone. Last week, a barrel of oil was nearing $100, but it dropped to $91.17 on Tuesday.

Rendell incorporated higher oil and gasoline prices and the looming end to caps on electricity rates into his ambitious energy plan.

"We're looking at an impending train wreck," he said.

His $850 million plan would expedite the state's development of a renewable and alternative energy industry.

The initial plan was rejected by state legislators during budget negotiations this summer. Several lawmakers took issue with the governor's plan to pay for his proposal, which calls for a "systems benefit charge" on monthly electric bills. Republicans likened the charge to a tax.

Rendell's plan, as well as several others, is back on the table through a special legislative session on energy scheduled this fall.

On Tuesday, the governor urged lawmakers to move the issue forward before the end of the year, adding that he is willing to compromise to make that happen.

"We have to have the money now," Rendell said. "This is a race to be won by the swift and the people who do it correctly. We're off to a great start, but we won't be very long. States are ratcheting up their investments and they're ratcheting up with a pool of money that's available now -- not 10 or 15 years down the road."

With about 40 business people representing agriculture and alternative energy companies standing behind him, Rendell said the development of an emerging industry is at stake.

"I believe renewable energy will be in the next 15 to 20 years what information technology and what life sciences have been to the economy in the last 20 years," Rendell said. "It will be the driver."

The places that invest in those alternative and renewable energy technologies will be the places that have robust economies down the road, he said.

So far, Pennsylvania has been able to attract its share of alternative and renewable energy projects. That could change as more state governments offer subsidies.

"Consider that Rhode Island, little Rhode Island, is putting nearly $300 million into incentivizing renewable energy," Rendell said.

Iowa and California are investing more than $1 billion in the new industry.

State Sen. Edwin Erickson, R-Chester and Delaware counties, is vice chairman of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.

He said there is much to be considered before any legislation is passed.

For example, legislation concerning the use of ethanol seemed straightforward, but environmental groups have expressed concerns about the corn-based fuel.

"Some of these things really deserve a good discussion," Erickson said. "Ideally, I'd like to see this done tomorrow, and realistically it's not going to be. There are some legitimate disagreements and concerns that people have that need to be talked through."