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Category Archives: Green Energy

Drivers, start your batteries!

Since Google.org launched the RechargeIT initiative in June as part of our efforts to stop global warming, a lot has happened in the world of plug-in vehicles. Automakers have made key announcements about future plans for plug-ins. Our grantee, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), along with Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), released a comprehensive assessment that found that widespread use of plug-in hybrids could dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The charge for electrified transportation is heating up, and we couldn’t be more excited. But consumers still can’t buy plug-in vehicles – and that’s a problem. It’s time for us to put some money where our mouth is and help accelerate mass commercialization of plug-in vehicles. Continue reading →

INTERNATIONAL UTILITY EFFICIENCY PARTNERSHIPS INC.

This RFP is sponsored by the International Utility Efficiency Partnerships, Inc. (IUEP). The IUEP has been a leader among the industry groups that have supported voluntary initiatives to address global climate change. The IUEP maintains its leadership by supporting international GHG reduction projects under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Initi?tive on Joint Implementation (USIJI), and by partnering with U.S. and international organizations. Continue reading →

Call for tenders for the National and European Solar Prizes 2004

The award of the National and European Solar Prizes in 2004 – as in the years before – has the purpose, to widely spread the subject of Renewable Energies. Outstanding innovative projects and initiatives as to the use of Renewable Energies are awarded in different categories.  The call for tenders for the European Solar Prizes by the respective national EUROSOLAR-sections is running simultaneously in several European countries and the prizes are awarded by EUROSOLAR in cooperation with the KfW. The winners of the European Solar Prizes will be chosen among the applicants for the respective national Solar-Prizes. Continue reading →

San Francisco Builds Green

San Francisco Bay area municipal governments are working to grow sustainable communities, by passing green building ordinances, requiring energy-efficient designs, recycled content and a host of ?green? strategies for public projects. In the city of San Francisco alone, new public projects of more than 5,000 square feet are now required to meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver standard.

LEED, the national energy- and environmental-efficiency standard set up by the U.S. Green Building Council, offers a four-tier rating system, ranging from basic certification to silver, gold and platinum levels. In San Jose, California?s third-largest city, any new construction of more than 10,000 square feet must be LEED certified. Mike Foster, Green Coordinator for San Jose, reports that many of the nearly 58 public projects now underway in the city incorporate green features such as carpeting with recycled content or paints with low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

?Green building makes good sense,? says Carl Mosher, director of environmental services for San Jose. ?We can reduce operating and maintenance costs by saving energy, water and other natural resources, in addition to reusing certain materials.? Neighboring cities of Pleasanton, Berkeley and San Mateo all have instituted LEED standards for new municipal construction.

?We?ve learned a tremendous amount,? says Mark Palmer, green building coordinator for the city of San Francisco, where 10 local pilot projects are evaluating green design and construction. The Academy of Sciences, the Laguna Honda Hospital, the Golden Gate Music Concourse and the Islais Creek Muni Facility have ?given us a means to learn what works and what doesn?t work,? he says. ?The perception is that green building is expensive. That simply is not true. The key is to get all parties together at the very beginning of the design process.?

The California Sustainable Building Task Force (CSBTF) found that constructing a green building costs an average of two percent more than traditional structures of the same size, but offers a tenfold savings over 20 years through lower energy and water bills, reduced waste, and improved worker productivity.
by Dana Abbott

ACEEE Advises Senate on Energy Efficiency and Natural Gas Policy

In his testimony, Nadel emphasized two major points:

* Energy efficiency policy action is the best way to bring down natural gas prices over the next five years. Recent ACEEE analysis, using the same computer models employed by the National Petroleum Council, showed that reducing natural gas and electricity by 4-5% over the next five years could reduce gas prices by about 25% before 2010, saving over $100 billion for American consumers and businesses.

* The Senate energy bill from 2004 (S. 2095) contained sound building blocks for such an effort, but new measures should also be added in the areas of appliance efficiency standards, an efficienc? resource standard that would set energy savings targets for utilities, and tax incentives for consumers? largest gas-saving opportunities.

ACEEE’s full list of recommended policy solutions includes: setting end-use efficiency resource targets for electric and gas utilities; creating tax incentives for high-efficiency technologies; accelerating federal appliance efficiency standards; supporting advanced building energy codes; expanding support for combined heat and power (CHP); increasing funding for energy efficiency research, development, and deployment; and conducting a national efficiency and conservation campaign.

ACEEE research results have shown that energy efficiency is the most viable near-term strategy for moderating natural gas prices, and is vital for stabilizing longer-term gas markets. Our proposal is based on a recent ACEEE analysis, which illustrated that if we reduce gas and electricity demand by 4-5% over the next five years, we would reduce wholesale natural gas prices by more than 25%. These savings would put over $100 billion back into the U.S. economy at a cost of $30 billion in new investment, of which less than one-quarter would be federal and state public funds.

Moreover, this investment would help bring back U.S. manufacturing jobs that have been lost to high gas prices, and would help relieve the crushing burden of natural gas costs experienced by many lower-income households. Importantly, much of the gas savings in our analysis comes from electricity efficiency measures, because so much electricity is generated by natural gas, often inefficiently.

Along with this filing, other key natural gas research results and references are available on ACEEE?s Web site at [url=http://aceee.org/energy/natlgas.htm]http://aceee.org/energy/natlgas.htm[/url]

About ACEEE: The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a means of promoting both economic prosperity and environmental protection. For information about ACEEE and its programs and publications, contact ACEEE, 1001 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 801, Washington, D.C. 20036-5525 or visit [url=http://aceee.org]http://aceee.org[/url]

Wind power and renewable energy in 2005

If you are interested as an investor, a potential buyer or user of wind power and other renewable energy sources and keen to see development in this sector, keep an eye on these conferences and seminars for the latest information and progress.

January 2005 USA
5th Annual HARVESTING CLEAN ENERGY Conference, January 20-21 2005, Heritage Inn, Great Halls MT, USA.
Contact: Liz Reese, Climate Solutions, 716 NE 10th Street, North Bend, WA 98045, USA; [email]lizre@centurytel.net[/email]; [url=http://www.harvestcleanenergy.org]www.harvestcleanenergy.org[/url]

January 2005 USA
Air Quality, Global Climate Change & Renewable Energy, January 24-26 2005, Westin La Paloma Resort, Tucson, Arizona.
Contact: Prabhu Dayal, C Trade, 5860 N. Calle Grandeza, Tucson, AZ 85718, USA. Tel: +1 520-615-3535; Fax: 1-602-296-0199; [email]pdayal@euec.com[/email]; [url=http://www.euec.com]http://www.euec.com[/url] or [url=http://www.ctrade.org]http://www.ctrade.org[/url]

January 2005 Germany
CLEAN ENERGY POWER 2005, January 26-27 2005, Fairground Berlin, Germany.
Contact: Elisabetta Alberti, erneuerbare energien, Unter den Linden 15, 72762 Reutlingen, Germany. Tel: +49-(0)7121-3016-0; Fax: +49-(0)7121- 3016-100; [email]redaktion@energie-server.de[/email]; [url=http://www.energy-server.com]http://www.energy-server.com[/url]

February 2005 USA
5th Wind Energy & Power Markets ConferenceI, February 2-3 2005, Marriott Denver City Center, Denver, Colorado, USA.
Contact: Anjali Schulte, Electric Utility Consultants, Inc. (EUCI), Tel: +1 303-770-8800; [email]aschulte@euci.com[/email]; [url=http://www.euci.com]http://www.euci.com[/url]

February 2005 USA
CleanTech Investing Conference, February 2-3 2005, The Lodge at Rancho Mirage, 68-900 Frank Sinatra Drive, Rancho Mirage, CA, USA.
Contact: Jennifer Fauci, Marketing, International Business Forum (IBF), 575 Broadway, Massapequa, Long Island, NY, 11758, USA. Tel: (516) 765- 9005, Ext. 19; Fax: (516) 765-9015; [email]jennifer@ibfconferences.com[/email]; http:// [url=http://www.ibfconferences.com]www.ibfconferences.com[/url]

February 2005 USA
Wind Power Finance & investment, February 8-10 2005, Rancho Bernardo Inn, San Diego, California, USA.
Contact: Chelsea Levengood, Event Manager, Infocast. Tel: +1 818.888.4445 Ext. 21; [email]chelseal@infocastinc.com[/email]; http:// [url=http://www.infocastinc.com/wind.html]www.infocastinc.com/wind.html[/url]

February 2005 USA
Wind Generation in Power Systems: A Short Course on the Integration and Interconnection of Wind Power Plants into Electric Power Systems, February 14-16 2005, Palm Springs, California, USA.
Contact: Sandy Smith, Communications Coordinator, Utility Wind Interest Group, Tel: (865) 691-5540, ext. 141; Fax: (865) 691-5046; [email]sandy@uwig.org[/email]; [url=http://www.uwig.org]http://www.uwig.org[/url]

February 2005 Spain
Grid Connection of Wind Turbines, February 15 2005, Madrid, Spain.
Contact: Bernd Neddermann, German Wind Energy Institute (DEWI), Tel: +49(0)4421-4808-65; [email]b.neddermann@dewi.de[/email]; [url=http://www.dewi.de]http://www.dewi.de[/url]

February 2005 Brazil
RIO 5World Climate & Energy — Latin American Renewable Energy Fair, February 18-20 2005, Fortaleza, Brazil.
Vanessa Espi, RIO 5 LAREF. Tel: +55-21-22335184; Fax: +55-21- 25182220; [email]info@rio5.com[/email]; [url=http://www.rio5.com]http://www.rio5.com[/url]

February 2005 USA
Marketing Green Power: Profit Opportunities in Selling Renewable Energy, February 23?24 2005, Marriott Denver City Center, Denver, Colorado, USA.
Contact: Anjali Schulte, Electric Utility Consultants, Inc. (EUCI), Tel: +1 303-770-8800; [email]aschulte@euci.com[/email]; [url=http://www.euci.com]http://www.euci.com[/url]

February 2005 Australia
4th Annual Australian Wind Energy Conference, February 24-25 2005, Stamford Grand, Adelaide, Australia.
Contact: John Wilson, Marketing Manager, Informa Australia Pty Ltd, Level 2, 120 Sussex Street, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia. Tel: +61 (0)2 9080 4364; Fax: +61 (0)2 9290 2577; [email]john.wilson@informa.com.au[/email]; [url=http://www.informa.com.au]www.informa.com.au[/url]

February 2005 Germany
Erneuerbare energien 2005 and Passiv- Haus 2005 CCB, February 25-27 2005, B?blingen, Germany.
Contact: Elisabetta Alberti, erneuerbare energien, Unter den Linden 15, 72762 Reutlingen, Germany. Tel: +49-(0)7121-3016-0; Fax: +49-(0)7121- 3016-100; [email]redaktion@energie-server.de[/email]; [url=http://www.energy-server.com]http://www.energy-server.com[/url]

February 2005 USA
Conference on Renewable Energy in the Upper Midwest, February 23-24 2005, Alerus Center, Grand Forks, ND, USA.
Contact: LaRae Foerster, Event Coordinator, Tel: +1 (701) 777-5246; [email]lfoerster@undeerc.org[/email]; [url=http://www.undeerc.org/re]http://www.undeerc.org/re[/url]

March 2005 Belgium
EU-India Wind Energy Network (EIWEN) Seminar, final date to be announced, Brussels, Belgium.
Contact:Hugo Chandler, EWEA. Tel: +32 (0)2 546 19 43; [email]hugo.chandler@ewea.org[/email]; [url=http://www.ewea.org]http://www.ewea.org[/url]

March 2005 Austria
World Sustainable Energy Days, March 2-4 2005, Wels/Austria.
Contact: Christine ?hlinger, O.?. Energiesparverband, A-4020 Linz, Landstrasse 45. Tel: +43-732-7720-14861; Fax: +43-732-7720-14383; [email]christine.oehlinger@esv.or.at[/email]; [url=http://www.esv.or.at]www.esv.or.at[/url]

March 2005 New Zealand
National Power New Zealand 2005, March 3-5 2005, Hilton, Auckland, New Zealand.
Contact: James Matthews, Tel: +61 2 9005 0729; [email]james.matthews@terrapinn.com[/email]; [url=http://www.terrapinn.com/2005/npnz_nz]www.terrapinn.com/2005/npnz_nz[/url]

March 2005 Finland
Boreas VII Conference, March 7-8 2005, Saariselk?, Finland.
Contact: Kirsi Virolainen, Tel: 358 9 1929 3301; Fax: 358 9 1929 4129; [email]boreas@fmi.fi[/email]
March 2005 USA Siting Wind Power Projects in the Eastern U.S, March 8-9, 2005, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Contact: Stefanie Brown, American Wind Energy Association, 550 S. Barrington Avenue, #1214, Los Angeles, CA 90049, USA. Tel: +1 (310) 476-7139, Fax: +1 (310) 471-1184; [email]sbrown@awea.org[/email]

March 2005 Germany
Global Alternative Fuels 2005 Exhibition and Forum, March 8-10 2005, Berlin, Germany.
Contact: Ana Mandaric, Marketing Manager, The Energy Exchange Ltd. Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7067 1802; [email]a.mandaric@theenergyexchange.co.uk[/email]; http:/ /www.theenergyexchange.co.uk

March 2005 Poland
ENEX New Energy 2005, March 21-23 2005, Fairground Kielce, Poland.
Contact: Elisabetta Alberti, erneuerbare energien, Unter den Linden 15, 72762 Reutlingen, Germany. Tel: +49-(0)7121-3016-0; Fax: +49-(0)7121- 3016-100; [email]redaktion@energie-server.de[/email]; [url=http://www.energy-server.com]http://www.energy-server.com[/url]

March 2005 USA
GLOBALCON, Energy, Power and Facility Management Strategies & Technologies, March 23 – 24 2005, Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, NJ , USA.
Contact: Ted Kurklis, Tel: +1 770-271-7869; Fax: +1 770-271-7981; [email]ted@aeecenter.org[/email]; [url=http://www.aeecenter.org/globalcon]www.aeecenter.org/globalcon[/url]

March 2005 Canada
Transmission Workshop: Wind Energy Delivery and Reliability, March 30-31, 2005, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Contact: Stefanie Brown, American Wind Energy Association, 550 S. Barrington Avenue, #1214, Los Angeles, CA 90049, USA. Tel: +1 (310) 476-7139, Fax: +1 (310) 471-1184; [email]sbrown@awea.org[/email];?http:// [url=http://www.ibfconferences.com]www.ibfconferences.com[/url]

April 2005 The Netherlands
Short course: Technology of offshore wind energy, April 4-5, 2005, Delft, The Netherlands.
Contact: Michiel Zaaijer, Delft University of Technology, Kluyverweg 1, Room 520, 5th floor, P.O. Box 5058, 2600 GB Delft, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 (0)15 278 6426; Fax: +31 (0)15 278 5347; [email]M.B.Zaaijer@lr.tudelft.nl[/email]; [url=http://www.windenergy.citg.tudelft.nl]www.windenergy.citg.tudelft.nl[/url]

April 2005 Scotland
Fifth International Workshop on Large-Scale Integration of Wind Power and Transmission Networks for Offshore Wind, April 7-8 2005, Glasgow, Scotland.
Contact: Thomas Ackermann, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Department of Electrical Engineering (ETS), Teknikringen 33, 10044 Stockholm, Sweden. Tel: +46-(0)8-7906639; Fax: +46-(0)8-7906510; [email]Thomas.Ackermann@ieee.org[/email]; [url=http://www.ekc.kth.se/ees/workshop/]http://www.ekc.kth.se/ees/workshop/[/url] offshore/

April 2005 Republic of Ireland
Irish Wind Energy Annual Conference, April 7-8 2005, Fairways Hotel, Dundalk, Co Louth, Ireland.
Contact: Ann Cureen, Irish Wind Energy Association, Tel: +353 71 9646072; [email]office@iwea.com[/email]; [url=http://www.iwea.com]http://www.iwea.com[/url]

April 2005 Thailand
The IASTED International Conference on ENERGY AND POWER SYSTEMS (EPS 2005), April 18-20 2005, Krabi, Thailand.
Contact: Kristina Crooks, IASTED, #80, 4500-16th Ave. NW, Calgary, AB. T3B 0M6. Tel: +1 (403) 288-1195; Fax: +1 (403) 247-6851; [email]kristina@iasted.org[/email]; [url=http://www.iasted.com/conferences/2004/florida/]http://www.iasted.com/conferences/2004/florida/[/url] pes.htm

April 2005 USA
EnergyOcean 2005 Conference, April 2628, 2005, Washington Convention Center, Washington D.C., USA.
Contact: Mj McDuffee, Conference Coordinator, EnergyOcean 2005, 7897 SW Jack James Dr, Suite A. Stuart, FL, 34997, USA. Tel: +1 772-221- 7720; Fax: +1 772-221-7715; [email]info@energyocean.com[/email]; [url=http://www.energyocean.com]www.energyocean.com[/url]

May 2005 UK
Clean Energy Technology & Investment Show, May 5-7 2005, The Business Design Centre, London, UK.
Contact: LPB Events Ltd, 18 King Edward Buildings, 629 Fulham Road, London SW6 5UH, UK: Tel: (44) 020 7751 9998; Fax:(44) 020 7751 9996; [email]info@clean-energy-expo.com[/email]; [url=http://www.clean-energy-expo.com]www.clean-energy-expo.com[/url]

May 2005 Canada
North American T&D Conference & Expo, May 9-11 2005, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Contact: Lee Baker, Tel: +1 888-253-1718; Fax: +1 416-398-2786; [email]leebaker@exposition.com[/email]; [url=http://www.natd.ca/]http://www.natd.ca/[/url]

May 2005 USA
Windpower 2005 Conference and Exhibition, May 15-18 2005, Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO, USA.
Contact: American Wind Energy Association, 122 C Street, NW, Suite 380, Washington, DC 20001, USA. Tel: +1 (202) 383-2500; Fax: +1 (202) 383- 2505; [email]windmail@awea.org[/email]; [url=http://www.awea.org]http://www.awea.org[/url]

May 2005 China
REAsia 2005 — 2nd Asian Renewable Energy Fair & Conference, May 21-25 2005, China International Exhibition Center, Beijing, China.
Contact: Harry Xu, REAsia 2005, A-804, Huazhan Plaza, No.12 Yumin Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China. Tel: 86-10-82252695, Fax: 86- 10-82252651; [email]harry@gracefair.com[/email]; [url=http://www.gracefair.com/]http://www.gracefair.com/[/url] reasia_home.htm

May 2005 UK
World Renewable Energy Congress (WREC2005), May 22-27 2005, Aberdeen, Scotland, UK.
Contact: Victoria Withy, WREC2005 Congress, Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre, Bridge of Don, Aberdeen AB23 8BL, Scotland, UK. [email]vwithy@aecc.co.uk[/email]; [url=http://www.wrec2005aberdeen.co.uk]http://www.wrec2005aberdeen.co.uk[/url]

May 2005 Cuba
4th International Conference for Renewable Energy, Energy Savings and Energy, May 25-28 2005, Varadero Beach, Cub?.
Contact: Conrado Moreno, CIER 2005, CETER, Calle 114 nr 11901, CUJAE, Marianao, Havana, Cuba. Tel: 53 7 260 5060; [email]cier@ceter.cujae.edu.cu[/email]; [url=http://www.cujae.edu.cu/eventos/cier]http://www.cujae.edu.cu/eventos/cier[/url]

June 2005
Hong Kong Renewable Energy Finance Asia, June 15-16, 2005, Hong Kong.
Contact: Sarah Ellis, Green Power Conferences, 2nd Floor, 145-157 St John Street, London EC1V 4PY, UK. Tel: +44 870 758 7808; [email]sarah.ellis@greenpowerconferences.com[/email]; [url=http://www.greenpowerconferences.com]www.greenpowerconferences.com[/url]

June 2005 USA
West Coast Energy Management Congress, June 28 – 29 2005, San Diego Convention Center, San Diego, CA, USA.
Contact: Ashley Clark, Exhibit Manager, Tel: +1 770-279-4392; Fax: +1 770-381-9865; [email]ashley@aeecenter.org[/email]; [url=http://www.aeecenter.org/emc]www.aeecenter.org/emc[/url]

September 2005 Czech Republic
Green Power Central & Eastern Europe, September 7-9, 2005, Prague, Czech Republic.
Contact: Sarah Ellis, Green Power Conferences, 2nd Floor, 145-157 St John Street, London EC1V 4PY, UK. Tel: +44 870 758 7808; [email]sarah.ellis@greenpowerconferences.com[/email]; [url=http://www.greenpowerconferences.com]www.greenpowerconferences.com[/url]

September 2005 USA
28th World Energy Engineering Congress, September 14 – 15 2005, Austin Convention Center, Austin, TX, USA.
Contact: Ted Kurklis, Exhibit Manager, Tel: +1 770-271-7869; Fax: +1 770-271-7981; [email]ted@aeecenter.org[/email]; [url=http://www.aeecenter.org/weec]www.aeecenter.org/weec[/url]

September – October 2005 Italy
EOLICA EXPO MEDITERRANEAN, September 29 – October 1 2005, Rome, Italy.
Contact: Solar Energy Group, Tel. +39 0266301754; Fax. +39 0266304325; [email]info@eolicaexpo.com[/email]; [url=http://www.eolicaexpo.com]http://www.eolicaexpo.com[/url]

October 2005 Republic of Ireland
Irish Wind Energy Autumn Conference, October 14 2005, Holiday Inn Hotel, Letterkenny, Co Donegal, Ireland.
Contact: Ann Cureen, Irish Wind Energy Association, Tel: +353 71 9646072; [email]office@iwea.com[/email]; [url=http://www.iwea.com]http://www.iwea.com[/url]

October 2005 Canada
CanWEA 2005, 21st Annual Conference and Trade Show, October 16-19, 2005, Toronto Congress Convention Center (Airport), Toronto, Canada.
Contact: Janice Taylor, Executive Coordinator, Tel: +1 403-851-0836; Fax: +1 403-851-0834; [email]canwea@telus.net[/email]; [url=http://www.canwea.ca]www.canwea.ca[/url]

October 2005 Denmark
Copenhagen Offshore Wind Conference and Exhibition, October 26-28 2005, Bella Center, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Contact: Jakob Lau Holst, Danish Wind Industry Association, Vester Voldgade 106, DK-1552 Copenhagen V, Denmark. Tel: +45 3373 0330; Fax: +45 3373 0333; [email]jh@windpower.org[/email]; [url=http://offshore.windpower.org]http://offshore.windpower.org[/url]

November 2005 Italy
Green Power Mediterranean, November 15-16, 2005, Rome, Italy.
Contact: Sarah Ellis, Green Power Conferences, 2nd Floor, 145-157 St John Street, London EC1V 4PY, UK. Tel: +44 870 758 7808; [email]sarah.ellis@greenpowerconferences.com[/email]; [url=http://www.greenpowerconferences.com]www.greenpowerconferences.com[/url]

Endangered species, energy top House Resources Committee chairman’s agenda

"We have ambitious goals at the Resources Committee, so we will get to work right away and build on our great record of accomplishment during the last Congress," Pombo said. "I want to change the debate on the challenges that lie ahead of us. The discussions on updating the ESA and producing energy in ANWR have been so mired in inane hyperbole that facts and true analysis have completely escaped the debate. This has done federal policy and the American public a real disservice."

Pombo said he would continue the committee’s bipartisan efforts to strengthen and update the ESA, which has posted a less than 1% success rate for species recovery in the last thirty years. Last year the committee set a benchmark in its effort to achieve this goal and has already begun discussions with the Senate, the Bush Administration, and the Governors to shape legislation that will pass Congress in this session.

"Enacting a comprehensive energy plan that increases domestic production on public lands such as ANWR will top my agenda again," Pombo continued. "The House has passed comprehensive energy plans four times in the last four years, only to have its efforts strangled by obstructionists in the United States Senate. In that time, American consumers have endured huge increases in energy prices, suffered through electricty blackouts, and sent more than $600 billion overseas to import a product we can make more of here at home."