The Go Green Debate

Now that Barack Obama will be taking office late next month, what can we expect his team to do to help with this energy crisis we now face?

Well the Obama-Biden team has put together a comprehensive New Energy for America plan to do the following:

• Provide short-term relief to American families facing pain at the pump
• Help create five million new jobs by strategically investing $150 billion over the next ten years to catalyze private efforts to build a clean energy future.
• Within 10 years save more oil than we currently import from the Middle East and Venezuela combined.
• Put 1 million Plug-In Hybrid cars — cars that can get up to 150 miles per gallon — on the road by 2015, cars that we will work to make sure are built here in America.
• Ensure 10 percent of our electricity comes from renewable sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025.
• Implement an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.

American coffee giant Starbucks became the target of conservationists today after an investigation by the U.K. newspaper The Sun estimated that the company wasted up to 6 million gallons of water every day, enough to quell the thirst of a small African nation.

As part of a company policy aimed at preventing germ buildup in its taps, Starbucks stores are directed to keep water running constantly into a sink, called a dipper well, to clean utensils and wash away food residue, The Sun reported.

As a result of running water all day, every day at each of the company’s 10,000 worldwide coffee emporiums, Starbucks wastes water in an amount The Sun estimated to be “enough daily water for the entire 2 million strong population of drought-hit Namibia in Africa or fill an Olympic pool every 83 minutes.”

The investigation was launched after a couple who spotted a running tap at a U.K. Starbucks were told by a store employee that it was left on to clean the pipes. They contacted Starbucks head office to find out more and later received a letter confirming that it was company policy to keep water constantly running into the dipper wells.

The Sun investigation spanned several Starbucks locations in the United Kingdom, including stores in London, Manchester and Birmingham, as well as in New York, Los Angeles, Beijing and Sydney. The practice of leaving taps on during operating hours was consistent in every location; The Sun reported that staff members were banned from turning the water off.

In a statement to ABC News, the company confirmed that “the dipper well system currently in use in Starbucks retail stores ensures that we meet or exceed our own and local health standards.”

“Starbucks’ challenge is to balance water conservation with the need for customer safety,” the statement said.

So does leaving the water on actually make germ buildup less likely?

“They don’t need to keep the tap on all the time. … A couple of minutes of running water should [clean the tap],” Jacob Tompkins of Waterwise, a nonprofit organization that focuses on decreasing U.K. water consumption, told ABCNews.com. “You don’t keep the water running at home.”

The water wastage seems an anomaly for a company that prides itself on its environmental record. In its mission statement posted on the company’s Web site, Starbucks claims that it has a commitment to “understand environmental issues, to strive to buy, sell and use environmentally-friendly products, and to instill environmental responsibility as a corporate value.”

Where do the presidential candidates stand on nuclear energy?

Barack Obama:

Has said we should explore nuclear power as part of the energy mix, but has also said nuclear is not a great option because of problems with safety and storage and because it usually requires big government subsidies.

John McCain:

Calls for 45 new nuclear power plants to be built in the U.S. by 2030, ultimately increasing to 100 new plants. Calls for government support for the nuclear industry.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on coal?

Barack Obama:

Supports “clean coal.” Supports coal-to-liquid fuels if they emit 20% less carbon over their lifecycle than conventional fuels. Says he would use “whatever tools are necessary to stop new dirty coal plants from being built in America — including a ban on new traditional coal facilities.”

John McCain:

Supports “clean coal.” Proposes spending $2 billion a year to help develop clean-coal technologies.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on cap-and-trade program for greenhouse-gas emissions?

Barack Obama:

Supports a cap-and-trade system to cut U.S. emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Would auction off 100% of emission credits, making polluters pay for the right to emit greenhouse gases.

John McCain:

Supports a cap-and-trade system to cut U.S. emissions 60% below 1990 levels by 2050. Would give away many emission credits at the start of his plan, though down the line he would phase in auctions of such credits. Would allow domestic and international offsets as a form of compliance.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on biofuels?

Barack Obama:

Calls for 60 billion gallons of “advanced biofuels” [PDF] like cellulosic ethanol to be produced in the U.S. each year by 2030. Proposes federal tax incentives and other inducements to help develop the advanced biofuels.

John McCain:

Supports increased use of biofuels, but has not offered specific targets. Opposes subsidies for ethanol.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on renewable energy?

Barack Obama:

Calls for getting 10% of U.S. electricity from renewables by 2012, and 25% by 2025. Proposes investing $150 billion over 10 years in renewables, advanced biofuels, efficiency, and other clean tech, and says this will help create 5 million green jobs.

John McCain:

Supports renewables, but has not offered specific targets.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on fuel-economy standards for automobiles?

Barack Obama:

Supports raising fuel-economy standards 4% — roughly one mile per gallon — each year. Proposes spending $4 billion to help U.S. automakers upgrade their plants to produce more efficient cars and trucks.

John McCain:

Says he would more effectively enforce existing fuel-economy standards. Said in 2007 that standards need to be raised, but has not offered specific targets.

Where do the presidential candidates stand on offshore drilling?

Barack Obama:

Generally opposes opening additional U.S. waters to offshore oil drilling, but says he would consider it as part of a comprehensive energy plan that includes incentives for renewable energy.

John McCain:

Calls for lifting the federal ban on offshore oil drilling in new areas. (Had opposed new offshore drilling until June 2008.)

Where does Sarah Palin stand on issues related to energy and the environment? Well the folks over at Grist put together this quick snapshot. Check it out..

• Opposed a statewide ballot initiative to prohibit or restrict new mining operations that could affect salmon in the state’s streams and rivers
• Has pushed to build a natural-gas pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope
• Got the state legislature to pass a bill to provide each Alaskan $1,200 to help with energy costs
• Sued the Interior Department over its decision to list the polar bear as a threatened species
• Has proposed eliminating Alaska’s gas tax
• Has pushed to open Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling
• Has created a committee to forge Alaska’s climate-change strategy, and has made Alaska an observer (but not a member) of the Western Climate Initiative
• Opposes a windfall profits tax on oil companies
• Was the ethics commissioner of the Alaska Gas and Oil Conservation Commission from 2003 to 2004
• Lifelong angler and hunter
• Husband is an oil production operator for BP on Alaska’s North Slope
• Started Alaska’s Petroleum Systems Integrity Office, an oversight and maintenance agency for the state’s oil and gas equipment, facilities, and infrastructure
• Chairs the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, a multistate panel “that promotes the conservation and efficient recovery of domestic oil and natural gas resources while protecting health, safety and the environment”
• Believes intelligent design should be taught along with evolution in science classes