Energy Secretary Steven Chu made the case that China’s heavy investment in cleantech is like the early days of the space race.Photo: NASAWith Republicans taking aim at the EPA and the Energy Department, Steven Chu, the top dog on the latter, is trying to make sure he’s at least a moving target.
A change of race: At a speech in Washington yesterday, Chu made the case that China’s heavy investment in cleantech R&D is like the early days of the space race when the Soviet Union threw down the gauntlet by launching Sputnik, the first satellite to orbit the Earth. Chu argued that if the U.S. wants to stay in the game, it needs to keep pumping money into high-tech research.
Chu also tossed out some telling statistics, such as: Of the $3.6 trillion 2010 federal budget, only 0.14 percent went for energy R&D. And that in 1998, the American share of worldwide high-tech exports was nearly 25 percent and China’s was less than 10 percent; by 2008, China’s share was 20 percent and the American share was less than 15 percent. [The New York Times]
We have met the enemy and he’s not us: For her part, EPA director Lis... Read more
