1) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM SPECIAL UPDATE: 5-19-01 *** Bush Administration Releases National Energy Policy IN A NUTSHELL: On May 17th, President Bush released a comprehensive national energy policy developed by a task force headed by Vice President Dick Cheney. The bulk of the task force's 105 recommendations can be carried out by presidential order and federal agency actions, but 20 require congressional approval. Both the House and Senate are moving forward with comprehensive energy bills incorporating the president's proposals. Although the Cheney report addresses both energy supply and demand, the most controversial provisions focus on increasing domestic supply of petroleum, natural gas, coal, nuclear, and hydroelectric energy. Days after his inauguration, President George W. Bush announced his intention to have Vice President Dick Cheney lead a National Energy Policy Development Group comprised of top administration officials. Their charge: to propose a comprehensive national energy policy. Cheney's group released its report -- "Reliable, Affordable, and Environmentally Sound Energy for America's Future" -- on May 16th to the president and Cabinet, and the report was released publicly the following day. The report is available in PDF format at http://www.whitehouse.gov/energy/. The president's comments are available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/05/20010517-2.html. Overall, the report makes 105 recommendations of which 12 can be accomplished by executive order and another 73 can be accomplished by agency action. The remaining 20 recommendations require congressional action. A majority of the recommendations relate to infrastructure and international relationships. Below are some of the key recommendations related to the earth sciences: * An executive order for federal agencies to take into account energy supply, distribution and use in any regulatory action. (The president issued this order yesterday along with one to expedite review of power plants and transmission lines.) *The Federal Emergency Management Agency will prepare for potential energy emergencies in conjunction with existing Regional Interagency Steering Committees. *The Environmental Protection Agency is to work with Congress to use market-based incentives to develop multi-pollutant legislation that would phase in reductions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury over a reasonable period of time. *The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the President's Council of Advisor's on Science and Technology are to review and report on more efficient use of the nation's energy resources. *The Departments of Energy and the Interior will promote the use of new technologies to recover more oil and gas from existing wells as well as work to build partnerships aimed at improving oil and gas exploration technologies. *The administration will work with Congress to authorize explorations and development of the 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR); an estimated $1.2 billion of federal revenue from new ANWR leases will be used to fund research in renewable and alternative fuels. *** Implementation Since President Bush announced the formation of Cheney's task force in January, two major Senate bills have been the focus of congressional action in developing a national policy: the National Energy Security Act (the Republican bill) and the Comprehensive and Balanced Energy Policy Act of 2001 (the Democrat bill). Although numerous hearings have been held, the bills themselves were put on the back burner until the release of the president's plan. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Frank Murkowski (R-AK) released his National Energy Security Act of 2001 (S.388 and S. 389) in February. The pair of bills -- one focused exclusively on tax policy -- aims to decrease the nation's reliance on foreign oil to 50 percent by 2011 through a suite of policy changes. Provisions include tax incentives for domestic oil and gas production, measures to expedite construction of gas pipelines, measures to promote energy conservation, incentives for research and development into "clean coal" technology, and many others addressing a range of energy sources. Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Tom Daschle (D-SD) sponsored the Comprehensive and Balanced Energy Policy Act (S. 597) and its companion tax bill (S. 596) in March. According to Bingaman, his legislation couples increased production with improved efficiency and decreased demand. The legislation "takes into account climate change policy, because the two are inextricably mixed and are linked together." Provisions in the bills seek to improve fuel efficiency in the transportation sector, decrease industry and domestic consumption through incentives to purchase more efficient products, and increase research and development in both supply and demand sectors. Now that the Cheney report is out and these two bills have been well circulated on Capitol Hill, Congress will begin to hold hearings on pulling the pieces together to establish a comprehensive national policy. House Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy Tauzin (R-LA) has announced he plans to separate the twenty provisions that require congressional approval into several smaller bills. Murkowski will take the Senate down the opposite path by keeping the energy package an omnibus bill. Murkowski's Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee has already scheduled a hearing on May 22nd to review all three of the plans. It will most likely fall on this committee to merge the three into a truly comprehensive plan of action that can obtain the bipartisan support necessary for passage in an evenly divided Senate. -Alert prepared by Margaret Baker, AGI Government Affairs Program SOIL WANTED Walk Across America- a geological art project based in Cleveland, Ohio, is attempting to collect one pound of soil (approx.) from each state in the US. Mail us your dirt and we will send you a free Walk Across America T-shirt. To Volunteer contact: Ehwazupdoc @ AOL.com. Mail your soil to: Rhonda Boyd, 56 S Forge St, Akron Ohio, 44304 POSITION OPENINGS ***University of Nevada, Reno-Watershed Hydrology The Environmental and Resource Sciences Department of the University of Nevada, Reno seeks candidates in the area of watershed science with emphasis on water quality, nutrient dynamics and/or sediment transport. A Ph.D. in watershed science, hydrology, civil/environmental/agricultural engineering or related field is required at appointment. Experience with numerical methods and modeling of water quality dynamics in surface waters is required and expertise in field-scale experimentation, non-point source pollution, contaminant fate and transport, and limnology is preferred. Candidates must possess strong written and oral communication skills, capability to develop an externally funded research program, and a documented commitment to excellence in undergraduate/graduate teaching and advisement of graduate students. This full-time (12-month) tenure-track position is anticipated to involve approximately 70% research and 30% teaching. Starting salary will be commensurate with qualifications/experience with a starting date of January 1, 2002 or as soon as possible thereafter. The successful candidate will be expected to collaborate on multidisciplinary research with faculty in the department on a broad range of activities including watershed assessment, range and forest restoration, habitat rehabilitation and impacts of anthropogenic pollutants on microbial and vertebrate populations. He/she will develop a nationally competitive research program in the areas of watershed hydrology and water quality and teach undergraduate/graduate courses in hydrology. The successful candidate will also have the opportunity to interact with several successful interdisciplinary graduate programs on campus, including: Environmental Science and Health; Environmental Engineering; and Hydrologic Sciences, a nationally recognized program at the University of Nevada, Reno with over 70 graduate students and 55 faculty. The candidate will also have opportunities to participate in experimental watershed studies in the Lake Tahoe basin, the Great Basin and with the Desert Research Institute. Applicants should send letter of application summarizing qualifications, curriculum vitae, statements of research and teaching interests, and names and contact information of 3 references to: Jean Freestone, Search Committee Secretary Dept. of Environmental & Resource Sciences University of Nevada, Reno/MS 186 1000 Valley Road Reno, NV 89512-0013 Applications received by July 1, 2001 will be given full consideration. For procedural clarification, contact: Ms. Jean Freestone, 775-784-4020 freeston@ers.unr.edu or Dr. Scott W. Tyler, Search Committee Chair (775-784-6250) styler@unr.edu. For additional information on the position and University, Department of Environmental and Resource Science and related programs, see: http://www.ag.unr.edu/naes/employ.htm and http://www.jobs.unr.edu. EEO/AA