RENO, Nev., Sept. 30, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- According to experts throughout the globe, the world's oil supply may be depleted as soon as the year 2020. However, renewable resources in the form of solar, wind, geothermal and biomass have become economically viable alternatives to continued dependence on foreign fuel sources. A renewable energy summit, focused on policy changes, barriers, challenges and opportunities, will be held in Reno, Nev., Wednesday, October 8, 2003.
The objective for the summit is to convene western state (Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming) policy makers and leaders, industry representatives, developers/owners of projects, utilities, tribal leaders, regulators and advocates in a forum to determine how the western states may become a more positive force through aggregation and organization in the development of energy policy at both the regional and national levels.
Fossil fuels are a finite resource on the planet. The BP World Energy Review anticipates enough crude petroleum oil to last through 2043, based on the assumption the world consumes its current rate of 24 billion barrels per year. However, if demand increases at the same rate it has in the past, the world's oil supply may be depleted in the next 17 years.
According to Congress, today, the United States imports 53% of its oil, 47% of which comes from OPEC countries; by 2020, the U.S. will import 62% of its oil unless we act to change the way we produce energy. World production is expected to peak some time in the next few decades, some say even as early as 2007. That means as energy demand increases more and more rapidly, the world's oil supply will be proportionally decreased.
However, clean energy technologies are poised to become a multi-billion dollar growth sector, with substantial economic impacts realized at the town, city, county, state and national levels. With archaic grid lines becoming a major national concern, new attention has been placed on industry and project developers to establish a positive, collaborative effort in the development of renewable energy and affiliated policies at regional and national levels. Distributed generation, a hallmark of renewable energy resources, brings jobs and revenues to plant locations in rural and urban areas.
"The western states as a whole, are poised to become the `power brokers' of the new energy economy and are home to five of the ten fastest growing states in the nation," said Misty Young, KPS/3 vice president (event producer). "Developing the west's vast renewable resources can provide economic opportunity, risk management, fuel price stability and energy independence among other benefits. This summit is a venue to initiate policy and stimulate development in what has been recognized as an economically viable and environmentally friendly tool."
At the summit, the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) will unveil newly completed, comprehensive Western States Geothermal Resource maps for all thirteen western states. And, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Nevada State Office of Energy (NSOE) will present a new meso-scale Nevada wind resource map.
The one-day summit in Reno, Nevada is scheduled for Wednesday, October 8th at Atlantis Casino Resort. The detailed agenda and information on conference reservations is posted at www.renewableenergysummit.com.