The Crisis in Energy Policy

193 Pages·2011·5.522 MB·English

by  John M. Deutch

THE C RISIS I N ENERGY POLICY

THE GODKIN LECTURES A T HAR VARD UNIVERSITY
The Godkin Lectures on the Essentials of Free Government and
the Duties of the Citizen w ere established at Harvard University
in 1903 in memory of Edwin Lawrence Godkin (1831–1 902).

They are given annually under the auspices of the
John F. Kennedy School of Government.
THE CRISIS IN
ENERGY POLICY
John M. Deutch
HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS

LONDON, EN GLAND
2011
To my sons: Philip, Paul, and Zachary
Copyright © 2011 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Deutch, John M., 1938–
The crisis in energy policy / John M. Deutch.
p. cm.
“The Godkin Lectures on the Essentials of Free Government and the Duties
of the Citizen.”
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978- 0- 674- 05826- 2 (alk. paper)
1. Energy policy— United States. I. Title.
HD9502.U52D48 2011
333.790973—dc22 2011010435
CONTENTS
Ac know ledg ments vii
Introduction 1
1. The Failure of U.S. Energy Policy 7
2. Energy and Climate Change 29
3. Energy Security 60
4. Biomass, Solar, and Nuclear Energy,
with an Aside on Natural Gas 79
5. Managing Energy Technology Innovation 110
6. Recommendations 134
Notes 151
Index 173

ACK NOW LEDG MENTS
For thirty- fi ve years I have worked on energy matters— as a
government offi cial, a university scholar, and an advisor to in-
dustry. During this time, I have been fortunate to form close
personal and professional relationships with many talented and
dedicated individuals. It is impractical to mention all who have
informed and infl uenced my life, so I mention only a few.
I am grateful to James Schlesinger and Charles Duncan, the
fi rst two Secretaries of Energy, for their guidance and support
during my ser vice in the Carter administration as Director of
Energy Research and Undersecretary. Both were unusual leaders
who infl uenced my approach to public ser vice. Jim Schlesinger,
because of our common background in the Department of De-
fense and the intelligence community, has deepened my under-
standing of the international linkage between energy and se-
curity. As a member of the President’s Nuclear Safety Oversight
Committee, the President’s Council on Science and Technology
during the second administration of Presidents Reagan and
Clinton, the Environmental Protection Agency Science Advisory
Board, the Defense Science Board, as well as innumerable advi-
sory committees and governing boards of Department of Energy
laboratories, I have profi ted from the knowledge of leading ex-
perts in every conceivable energy technology.
At MIT, for more than a dozen years, I taught “Application of

Technology to Energy and the Environment” with my colleague
and friend Richard Lester. The purpose of this course was to
viii Ac know ledgm ents
introduce students to the complex task of integrating technical,
economic, and environmental considerations required to under-
stand energy issues. The enthusiasm of the students—w ho were
often for the fi rst time learning about the problems of applying
technology outside their disciplines— as they grasp the chal-
lenge, has been enormously gratifying.
During more than forty years at MIT, I have worked with
colleagues across the Institute on a wide range of energy prob-
lems. My collaborations have been stimulating, productive, and
fun. Paul Joskow, for example, has wisely and consistently kept
my technical aspirations in line with sensible economic reality;
his policy judgment is unsurpassed. Ernie Moniz has been my
closest technical collaborator for fi fteen years; he has my admi-
ration for his successful leadership of the MIT Energy Initia-
tive. The MIT faculty has many talented and engaging scholars,
who along with MIT students are the reasons why being a mem-
ber of this university community is so rewarding.
I have also enjoyed a long and rewarding association with
Harvard—G raham Allison, Joe Nye, L. Mahadevan, and George
Whitesides each have had, and I hope will continue to have, a
strong infl uence on my personal and professional life. Harvard’s
Kennedy School of Government has my thanks for the privilege
of being the 2010 Godkin lecturer.
My interactions with industry have made me a better teacher,
researcher, and public offi cial. I deplore the ster eot ypes of ivory-
towered academics who work on ideas and practical business men
and women who solve problems. Leaders in both professions
recognize that successful resolution of major societal technology
problems requires the best new ideas, implemented in the most
effi cient manner possible. As a board member of Schlumberger,
CMS Energy, ANR Pipeline, Cheniere Energy, CITIGROUP,

and more recently as an advisor in several energy start- up
companies— SION, Foro, MC-1 0, and Sun Catalytix— I have had
Ac know ledgm ents ix
the satisfaction of applying my technical and academic know-
ledge, and observing innovation happen in different practical
situations. During my thirty- plus year association with Warburg-
Pincus, I have learned a great deal about private investment in
energy enterprises around the world, while deepening my per-
sonal and professional relationship with Harold Brown, former
Secretary of Defense, Director of Lawrence Livermore National
Laboratory, and President of Caltech, whose record of public ser-
vice has been a model.
In sum, I am grateful for the combinations of factors—
mentors, colleagues, and opportunities— that have permitted
me to engage with our nation’s energy challenges.