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With President Bush’s signature, an energy bill that includes a 40 percent increase in fuel economy standards has become law. Driving America’s Future has supported a reasonable and achievable increase in CAFE standards from the beginning of the debate and Congress, in a bi-partisan fashion under the strong leadership of Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid, crafted legislation which presents automakers with an achievable goal without excessive regulatory costs that stifle innovation. This legislation also supports advanced technologies that can make future increases in CAFE standards unnecessary as vehicle electrification along with the use of alternative fuels may remove the automobile from the climate change debate permanently.

Amazingly, in just the few months this debate on energy has been waged, a number of advances in vehicle technology have already taken place, including dual mode hybrids in SUVs, advances in batteries for plug-in electric hybrid vehicles and the public release of hydrogen fueled vehicles from BMW, Honda and General Motors. All of this has occurred in just the last nine months, and I firmly believe this is just the beginning.

I want to thank our coalition members that have lent their support to Driving America’s Future’s efforts. Without the time and effort of our membership our collective voices could not have been added to the debate nor would it have carried as much weight. Whether community groups, the agricultural community, labor, business or industry, our coalition members would in some way be affected by automotive energy policy. I am pleased we were able to find common ground and I know our coalition members will be pleased to see the balanced, reasonable and achievable bill that our voice helped to shape.

Now that the standards are set, we must all work together to ensure the infrastructure and market tools are in place to support the automotive advancements.

Driving America’s Future looks forward to being involved with the exciting developments in our energy and automotive future

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Chrysler recently introduced ENVI, a new division within the company that will build and design electric and hybrid vehicles. ENVI will be based in Detroit and be staffed by specialists in engineering, manufacturing, procurement and supply as the company plans to introduce its first two hybrid vehicles, a Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen in 2009.

This announcement is a further development of “green collar” jobs which will continue to rise as more and more auto manufactures expand their efforts in advanced technology. “Green collar” jobs make up the occupations or service sectors that are environmentally friendly and promote cleaner and/or renewable energy for the future. From installing solar panels on a house to designing more fuel efficient vehicles, these  jobs are becoming more popular.

According to a 2006 study by Management Information Systems, Inc., the “green economy” is exploding into a billion-dollar industry. Green jobs will have a tremendous effect not only for our environment, but also for our economy with more jobs being created every day.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Ford and Daimler are investing $60 million a piece in a shared venture to purchase the automotive fuel cell division of Ballard Power Systems. This purchase gives the companies access to numerous patents for the fuel cell technology as well as a highly trained work force of 150 people.

This is another major investment in the future of the automobile and should further silence the skeptics that believe fuel cells are a pie in the sky technology. An investment of $120 million would simply not be made if Ford and Daimler did not believe their investment would make great returns. Ballard’s system is already in use by 130 cars, trucks and buses and with two major auto companies on board, this number will only grow.

In addition, Honda revealed its own customer-ready fuel cell vehicle at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show, and General Motors has released 100 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles of its own to the general public on short term leases. The automakers involved in hydrogen are promising major advances in the next five years, and investments like this signal an industry that is on track to meet this impressive goal.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

A new dual mode hybrid SUV released by Chevrolet won the “Green Car of the Year” award at the Los Angele Auto Show. The vehicle gets 21 miles per gallon under normal city driving conditions, the same as the Toyota Camry Sedan.

The award is given by Green Car Journal, published by Ron Cogan. Cogan had this to say about the vehicle:

“People don’t think green when SUVs are concerned and for generally good reason, since SUVS often get poor fuel economy. Chevrolet’s Tahoe Hybrid changes this dynamic with a fuel efficiency improvement of up to 30 percent.”

While most cars that win this award are built from the ground up to be small, light and as fuel efficient as possible, the Tahoe can be used like any other full size SUV. The vehicle seats eight, can tow a boat or camper and has full off road capability. The Tahoe is another step in the right direction and consumers are already excited about helping the environment and saving money at the pump all without compromising their family’s needs when it comes to full size, full utility vehicles.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Yes. That’s right. There are currently government scientists who have joined with Chevron to turn algae into transportation fuels. I saw this on the Autopia blog and to this day it amazes me what science is able to do to reduce our dependence on oil. HR 2927 would allow scientist to further develop advanced technologies and breakthroughs for alternative fuels.

As you can read in the blog post, Algae is an abundant “promising source of fuel because many species contain high amounts of oil that can be extracted, processed and refined into fuel”. The other reason algae is a good source, is that it is easy to find and easy to grow and reproduce inexpensively.

What will we think of next?

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Recently Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell announced a massive new biodiesel plan for his state. His office is supporting 24 new projects that with the goal of replacing 95 million gallons of conventional diesel fuel with homegrown biodiesel, an effort that will create jobs in Pennsylvania, improve the states infrastructure and stimulate further advancements in alternative fuels and technologies. In a statement Gov. Rendell said:

“This year, Pennsylvania will spend nearly $30 billion to purchase gas and liquid fuels from beyond our borders. Rather than sending that money abroad, we’re making a commitment to work toward energy independence and invest that money here. That means supporting the farmers who grow the crops that create ethanol and biodiesel, the manufacturers who turn those crops into fuel and the trucking companies and railroads that ship the final product to the retailer. And at each step along that supply chain, there’s a job for Pennsylvania’s hardworking men and women,”

Efforts like the one in Pennsylvania show the best part of expanding alternative fuels in America. If Pennsylvania can keep only some of the $30 billion that is spent outside of its borders internally, that amounts to a massive amount of tax dollars and investment money. Pennsylvania also has been hard hit by lost jobs in manufacturing; these jobs can be replaced with new “green collar” jobs in the biofuel industry. Alternative fuels are good for the economy, good for jobs and, as Gov. Rendell has discovered, great for a state’s overall economic well being.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Often times, this space is focused on automotive industry research and development efforts but there is another, often overlooked source: America’s colleges and universities. Researchers across the country are experimenting with cellulosic ethanol, a biofuel derived from non-food crops like switchgrass. The sugar in these plants resides in cell walls and when broken down using enzymes massive quantities of ethanol can be harnessed.

Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin are leading the effort in the Midwest with a $125 million Department of Energy grant dedicated to the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center. According to Suleiman Bughara, a professor associated with the project, one acre of switchgrass can yield 12 to 13 tons of the crop, enough to create 500 gallons of ethanol.

This research is not confined to any one region, and there are centers in California, Nebraska, Michigan, New York, Illinois, Indiana and Tennessee, all built on the foundation of America’s educational institutions. However, as my trip to Pittsburgh in August taught me it’s not just the plant scientists getting involved. At Duquesne, I met business students and discussed the positive impact green developments will have on the economy and at the University of Pittsburgh I met with engineering students learning to design more efficient, greener vehicles.

Educational institutions are one of this country’s greatest resources, and are unmatched anywhere in the world for their ability to convert education and research into intellectual capital. When this intellectual capital is spent, the results are amazing. I’ll let Bruce Dale, professor of chemical engineering at Michigan State, explain:

”This is science with a purpose. The United States uses 140 billion gallons of gasoline a year, over 60 percent of it from imported oil. If we improve plant science, processing, fermentation, we are capable of developing a bioeconomy that is much cleaner than the petroleum economy and can replace all of our imported oil with liquid fuels produced from crops.”

Putting our nation’s best minds on one of our most pressing national problems just makes sense. I applaud the researchers in institutions across the country and eagerly await the new green economy they will usher in. The future is now in colleges and universities across America

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

Ford and Daimler are investing $60 million a piece in a shared venture to purchase the automotive fuel cell division of Ballard Power Systems. This purchase gives the companies access to numerous patents for the fuel cell technology as well as a highly trained work force of 150 people.

This is another major investment in the future of the automobile and should further silence the skeptics that believe fuel cells are a pie in the sky technology. An investment of $120 million would simply not be made if Ford and Daimler did not believe their investment would make great returns. Ballard’s system is already in use by 130 cars, trucks and buses and with two major auto companies on board, this number will only grow.

In addition, Honda plans on revealing its own customer-ready fuel cell vehicle at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show, and General Motors has released 100 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles of its own to the general public on short term leases. The automakers involved in hydrogen are promising major advances in the next five years, and investments like this signal an industry that is on track to meet this impressive goal.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

There will be 15 hybrids for sale in 2008, four more than last year and excitingly not all of the newly released vehicles are limited to “gas-sipping compacts”. This is a good article that outlines the SUV’s car companies are introducing to the hybrid mix. The luxury Lexus LS 600h L will be available to environmentally friendly drivers and General Motors will begin selling the Chevy Tahoe and the GMC Yukon in hybrid versions offering 25% better fuel economy than before.

“This will be the first hybrid in a full-size sport utility vehicle,” said Jim Sloan, marketing manager for the Yukon hybrid. “Just because you drive a full-size doesn’t mean you’re not concerned about being green.”

Drivers have different needs in the vehicles they use; new hybrid SUVs will offer consumers more options when trying to gain greater fuel economy. And our options will only continue to grow as we develop more alternative fuels and advanced technologies.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman

On October 18, 2007 Jerry Garrett wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times about “Tomorrow’s” Chevrolet. He refers specifically to the company’s plans for the future as vaporware, which he defines as “a term the computer industry uses to describe a new product that is hyped but never delivered.” What product has he labeled vaporware? The Chevrolet Volt – a concept vehicle which plugs into the existing electric grid and can run 40 miles without using petroleum at all.

Garret’s vaporware claim is based on the vehicles battery system, of which he says “It’s still on someone’s drawing board. Or perhaps it hasn’t even graduated from the designer’s imagination yet.” This statement is just untrue, as a quick glance at A123Systems corporate website will tell you.

For some reason Garret is outraged that the domestic automakers are attempting to create a vehicle that removes the automobile form the environmental equation. Interestingly, this sentiment is often echoed by others who consider themselves environmentalists. First they say the industry is not doing enough, but then cry foul and say the industry is overreaching and obfuscating when developing cars of the future.

The attitude of environmental activists on automotive issues is simply perplexing. Apparently the only thing you can do to make them happy is produce hybrids, striving for anything more advanced earns producers nothing but scorn. Environmentalists should be cheering a major automaker’s environmental effort, not deriding the efforts in biased news reports.

-Rodney E. Slater, Chairman