San Francisco Chronicle, by Zachary Coile, January 8, 2009

Silicon Valley venture capitalist John Doerr (a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, which is betting billions on clean energy technologies), whose early investments helped launch Google and Amazon, delivered a stark warning to Congress on Wednesday that the United States is on the verge of being left behind in the green tech revolution. He made five recommendations to jump-start a green-tech revolution and fight global warming:
 

** Modernize the grid: As part of the economic stimulus package, Doerr said Congress should invest in a more efficient electric grid that can deliver solar and wind power to consumers across the country.
 

** Put a price on carbon: A cap-and-trade system and a carbon tax that's refunded to taxpayers could drive up the costs for coal plants and make low-carbon sources, wind and solar, more competitive.
 

** A national renewable energy standard: Doerr believes the federal government should follow California and two dozen other states that require utilities to generate more of their power from renewable sources.
 

** New incentives for utilities: California utilities will spend $3 billion on energy-efficiency measures over the next 18 months because state rules give companies major incentives to conserve energy. New federal rules could force other states to follow suit, he said.

** More federal energy research: The federal government spends less than $1 billion a year on renewable energy research. Doerr urged more federal research and loan guarantees to help new technologies get off the ground.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/07/MN041558UP.DTL&feed=rss.news