Renewable Energy Summit Addresses 25x'25 Goal

The fourth National 25x'25 Renewable Energy Summit took place in Omaha, NE, on March 11-13. The summit addressed the Bush Administration's call on the nation's farms, ranches, and forestlands to meet 25 percent of the nation's energy needs with renewable resources including biomass, biofuels, wind energy, solar power, geothermal energy, and hydropower by the year 2025. Discussions included the opportunities and challenges of bringing the 25x'25 goal into fruition including the latest in policy, research, and market developments.

The National Steering Committee set forth principles that will assure a sustainable 25x'25 renewable energy future to underscore the concept of sustainability as the ideal of stewardship. The 25x'25 Goal and Action Plans stand on a foundation of five key principles – efficiency, partnership, commitment, opportunity, and sustainability. The Committee understands that for renewable energy production to be a long-term solution for the country, it "must conserve, enhance, and protect natural resources and be economically viable, environmentally sound, and socially acceptable."

"Sustainability has always been considered as central to the success of the 25x'25 renewable energy initiative," said Steering Committee Co-Chair Read Smith. "At the heart of the principles is the responsible use and orderly development of natural resources in a way that takes full and balanced account of the interests of society, future generations, and other species. It also means acknowledging private needs, while accepting significant answerability to society."

The 25x'25 goal is supported financially by the Energy Future Coalition, a non-partisan public policy initiative funded by foundations. For more information visit the 25x'25 Web site (http://25x25.org).