Hour 2: "Clark's Energy Show" We may not like to admit it, but we are becoming weak as a country. When we must buy oil from countries that mean us harm, we are putting ourselves in a weak position. It's not just the pinch high gas prices are putting on our wallets. We must consider the bigger picture of doing business with people who are gaining strength and want to harm us. Getting energy under control means we will have power.
Caller 1: There is a lack of communication between the (political) parties. When people make decisions based on emotion and passion, they usually make a mistake. The culprits are the representatives in Congress. It's driving me crazy that these things continue to go on. We have to come to some realism.
Clark: People focus on their own lives. We don't pay attention to things until something slaps us in the face. That's part of being an American. And we haven't focused as a country – either as citizens or as politicians. We can talk about government regulations all day long. But so far our energy policy has been heavily tilted toward rewarding the oil companies. We've got to get a serious focus on creating alternative energy and energy independence.
Caller 2: I'm in the energy management business and it blows my mind ... that when contractors are bidding on prices, they're trying to cut it as cheap as they can and not one person is looking at operating expense. The systems we install pay for themselves in about two years.
Clark: You're right that in multi-tenant office buildings and industrial parks, they're not paying attention to the payback of doing what's efficient instead of what is cheapest. We can be so much smarter with how we use energy. But getting people to do this is so hard.
Remember that some gas companies have programs for senior citizens and lower income families that could save them money. Those people can get their homes retrofitted and get money back for making their homes more energy efficient. Just dial 211 on your phone, which will take you to the United Way in your area. Ask about energy programs.
Clark talked with
Dr. Andrew Frank, a mechanical engineering professor and researcher from the University of California at Davis. He has spent much of the last 30 years studying electric motors and batteries to make vehicles more fuel-efficient.
Frank's expertise is with plug-in hybrids, which have bigger batteries and smaller gas engines. He's converted Ford and GM cars into plug-ins and the difference is amazing. The fuel economy is even better than hybrids of today, getting between 120 and 240 miles to the gallon. He said there is only one way to get out of the current situation and that is to build and buy more fuel efficient cars.
Caller 3: Why not build a single occupant vehicle lane? It would have its own electrical source like the old trolleys. It's what the market wants. The single occupant vehicle has no other alternative right now.
Clark: Great idea. It would cost about 2 cents a mile. They're being built in Europe right now by Mercedes. It would take building the grid but it could be done. We have failed to work on energy independence and we need to be creative.
Caller 4: I'm slowing down. I drive about 140 miles a day and have for the past seven and a half years. I was driving 70 to 75 miles per hour and getting about 20 miles to the gallon. I'm driving between 55 and 60 now and get about 26 miles per gallon now.
Clark: It's true. We're just gulping fuel the more we speed up. It costs you only about 12 to 15 minutes more to get where you're going and you're saving a ton of dough.
Caller 5: I did research into building a new home and I found something called ICL or "insulated concrete form." I installed that in my 7,000 square feet home and I pay a combined heating and cooling bill of less than $100 a month. It didn't cost me a whole lot more to do – about 20 percent up front. And there is another concept of converting throw-away plastics into gasoline.
Clark: We can do things so differently than how we do them now. When you buy a house, do you care about how it's heated? If you're like most homebuyers, probably not. But a huge part of the cost of operating the house is what you pay for energy. You have to pay attention to proper insulation, getting your duct work checked and making sure your home is in shop-shape. Check out
southface.org for more. We are not sitting ducks.
Employers can also do their part by offering workers a 4-day, 10-hour work week. It will help reduce traffic and help workers reduce their gas costs. What we drive matters. How we drive matters. And, looking at alternative energy is key. We, as a country, better not take our eyes off the ball, even if energy gets cheaper down the road.
