www.nrdc.org/policy
January 2009
© Natural Resources Defense Council
EnergyFactsClean Energy: The Solution
to Volatile Gas Prices
For more information,
please contact
Jim Presswood at
(202) 289-2427
Brian Siu at
(202) 289-2417
Luke Tonachel at
(212) 727-4607 or
Simon Mui at
(415) 875-6120.
Drilling for Oil is Not the Answer
There have recently been an abundance of
proposals related to drilling in the Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge and protected areas of the Outer
Continental Shelf (OCS). Framed as a response
to the current pain of high gas prices, these
proposals are misleading. Not only would it be
almost a decade before production could occur
in either place, but with America accounting for
2 percent of global oil reserves and 25 percent of
total consumption—the U.S. consumes about 21
million barrels of oil per day—additional drilling
will not significantly reduce gas prices or enhance
energy security.
Clean Energy Strategy Offers
Greater Benefits
As shown in the figure on page 2, the potential oil
savings from a comprehensive strategy far outpace
the amount of oil we could scrape from the Arctic
Refuge and protected OCS areas. Oil savings
accrue immediately, remain higher, and grow
faster. In 2030, the results of a broad clean energy
strategy trump drilling by nearly 9 million barrels
per day.
And unlike drilling, clean energy provides
substantial environmental and economic benefits
to the United States. Clean energy will not harm
our coasts and wilderness areas, while drilling
With gas prices fluctuating in recent years, Americans may feel uneasy
at the pump. While some advocate drilling as a solution, there are better
ways to provide stability for consumers. Newly updated NRDC analysis
shows that the oil savings from clean energy measures can far outpace the
potential oil production of drilling in America’s protected areas. The real
solution to volatile gas prices and oil dependency is a strategy that relies on
energy efficiency, clean fuels, and transportatio