PRESS AVAILABILITY

CHATTANOOGA PRESS ASSOCIATION

TALKING POINTS

POV: Sustainable Development Revolution -- Not Your Father's R & D

CHATTANOOGA GOT ON BOARD

• In 1969 Dept. of Health, Education, Welfare (HEW) report called Chattanooga "worst polluted city" in U.S.
  • Particulates, smog (ozone), high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide -- made city the site of earliest urban air quality studies of 1970's

• In response, Chattanooga developed program 20 years ahead of its time
  • Clean Air Act amendments of 1990 brought federal requirements up to levels of program implemented in Chattanooga in early 1970's

• 1984 -- Vision 2000
  • Identified what the community could be
    • Involved the whole community in planning process
    • Made conscious choice to seek opportunities in entire social fabric -- housing, transportation, industry, etc.
    • Recognition of interrelatedness of economic, ecological and social systems

  • Downtown and neighborhood revitalization
    • Riverfront park -- 26 miles of riverfront
      • Public access
      • Preserving beauty and diversity of Tennessee River Gorge
    • Greening streets and highways with plantings and landscaping -- saving energy and helping to keep the air clean
    • Chattanooga home to one of nation's most polluted streams and one of cleanest
      • Working to clean-up Chattanooga Creek and to protect and maintain North Chickamauga (chick-uh-MAW-guh) Creek

  • Really can see seven states from the top of Lookout Mountain -- and one of the "most livable cities in America" too

• Home Grown Jobs and Business in Chattanooga from Sustainable Technologies
  • Advanced Vehicle Systems (AVS)
    • Organized in late 1992 to develop and produce battery powered electric transit vehicles
      • Now employs between 30 and 34 workers manufacturing electric buses for Chattanooga
      • Also reaching out for new markets -- Birmingham, Alabama; Charlotte, North Carolina; as far as Allentown, Pennsylvania
    • AVS produces buses 22 feet and 31 feet in length -- built in Chattanooga from the ground up
      • Features include: cheaper operating costs, maintenance free wheelchair ramp, lower floors and, of course, battery power means zero emissions
    • AVS leader in electric vehicle technology advances
      • Partnering with University of Texas Center for Electromechanics (CEM)
      • Cooperating on developments such as:
        • Low voltage (homopolar) motor with substantially lower manufacturing costs;
        • Electromagnetic suspension system for a more stable ride on transit vehicles; and,
        • Flywheel energy storage system used to charge bus batteries
      • Working with Southwest Research Institute, a premier motor and fuel research center -- an advanced power unit (APU) with generator will be fitted onto a Chattanooga Area Regional Transit Authority (CARTA) - owned electric bus
        • Expected to increase bus travel range by more than 50 percent
      • AVS also working to develop high- efficiency air conditioning systems

  • Electric Transit Vehicle Institute
    • Chattanooga Area Regional Transit Authority (CARTA) took part in formation of Electric Transit Vehicle Institute (ETVI) -- also Federal Transit Administration, Tennessee Dept. of Transportation, U.S. Dept. of Defense
      • To promote use and development of electric transit vehicles
    • ETVI has been asked to serve as coordinator for use of electric transit vehicles at 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta

  • Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise
    • Goal was to revitalize neighborhoods and make all housing fit and livable
    • Today, Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise (CNE) has $21 Million annual budget
      • Non-profit lender, property management and developer
      • Funding from foundations, banks, local, state and federal agencies
    • 4166 units completed for low and moderate income families
    • Represents an investment of $63,420,725 since 1987
    • 40 full time jobs at CNE
    • $2 Million per year in construction on rehabilitation of properties has stimulated business for small minority contractors
    • Model for cities around the nation

  • W. R. Grace & Company
    • Private sector industry involvement in sustainable future
    • $15 Million capital investment in recovery and storage project for commercially valuable rare earths and low-level radioactive material
      • Further expenditures of $6 Million additional capital and $12 Million operating costs over 10-year life of project
    • Project unique in approach to:
      • Environmental restoration
      • Preservation of jobs
      • Involvement of community leadership and citizens in decision making
      • Production of a future energy resource

PRESIDENT'S COUNCIL ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• In town to learn and share knowledge
  • Bringing together diverse views from business and government, environmental advocates, labor representatives, community activists
  • Like Chattanooga -- Council takes the long view on what we can and should do to make our world more livable and to pass that better world on to our children
  • Progress comes when we understand that shared interests are better for everyone than Cold War mentality -- "competing" interests
    • Break away from "trade-off" mentality
    • Pursue "win-win" strategies

• Want to celebrate accomplishments of Chattanooga
  • Comprehensive view of the community and all-encompassing plan in line with goals of President's Council

• Identify Opportunities at Home and Abroad for Sustainable Revolution to Continue
  • India -- Visited last July
    • U.S. companies part of delegation mix -- commercial deals worth more than $400 Million signed -- $3 Billion more on the fast-track
    • $245 Million gas combined cycle power project

  • Pakistan -- Led delegation in September -- signing of 16 business agreements totalling nearly $4 Billion in value

  • Diversity of Energy Supplies Builds Energy Security and Independence
    • Cleaner forms of current choices
    • Coal-fired power in China and India will become major source of greenhouse gases in next century
      • India trip yielded plans for coal washing technology demonstration project
      • China offers opportunity in clean coal technologies

  • Eastern Europe Vast Markets for Environmental Technologies
    • $1 Trillion needed over next decade to meet electricity demands in developing nations and Eastern Europe (source: International Institute for Energy Conservation)

  • U.S. has expertise to bring clean, efficient technologies to these nations
    • Worldwide market for environmental technologies -- $300 Billion in 1992 (source: DOE)
    • European Community expected to spend more than $400 Billion to reduce greenhouse gas emissions this decade
    • U.S. expected to spend $770 Billion over same period (source: Center for Exportation of Science and Technology)

DOE PLAYS UNIQUE ROLE IN SUSTAINABLE MIX

• Deployment of Clean/Diverse Energy
  • In 1993, the U.S. spent $54 Billion on imported oil
  • Oil imports accounted for 44 percent of foreign trade deficit
  • By the end of decade, U.S. dollars going overseas to pay for oil expected to grow to $94 Billion
  • Today we spend almost $500 Billion annually in the U.S. to light and heat our homes and offices, run our transportation systems, and operate our farms and factories
  • Even modest energy savings can produce new tax-free disposable income for families, new capital for businesses and lower overhead to make industries more productive and competitive
  • More bang for the buck with energy efficiency
    • U.S. could reduce primary energy demand by at least 20 percent using only investments in efficiency with a payback of 5 years or less (source: Alliance to Save Energy)
    • American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy study concluded that cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy measures could reduce national energy use in 2030 by 50 percent compared to 1988 AND
    • Save $2.3 Trillion
    • Reduce carbon emissions by 70 percent

  • More efficient industrial electric motor systems in industrial sector could save 240 Billion kilowatt hours and save $13 Billion -- plus reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 48.5 Million tons
  • Renewables reduce dependence on, and vulnerability of foreign supplies
    • Within 15 years, renewable energy could generate enough electricity to power 40 Million homes -- offsetting 70 days of oil imports
    • Federal renewable energy and energy efficiency programs will create 20,000 jobs in 1995 alone
    • Non-polluting -- U.S. industry currently spends around $12 Billion annually to control air emissions
    • Solar energy can destroy hazardous wastes -- FOR EXAMPLE -- concentrated sunlight can be used to decontaminate and detoxify air and water
    • Exports of renewable energy equipment reached $245 Million in 1992 -- benign environmental effects will make them much more marketable in future

• Project Sapphire
  • Transfer of weapons grade nuclear materials to U.S. from Kazakhstan to safe storage at Y-12/Oak Ridge facility -- the first DOE facility to have received an international inspection
  • Consistent with President's top foreign policy initiative to prevent proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
  • Government of Kazakhstan asked for our help -- they were concerned about the security of these materials -- not wanting them to fall into the wrong hands -- our response was immediate
  • Safely transferred uranium from more than 7000 containers into about 1400 stainless steel cans, each about the size of a quart can of oil
  • Material will be transferred to a commercial facility within 6 - 9 months where it will be blended down for use in commercial reactors
  • Meanwhile, it is stored safely in a facility approved by the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)

• Cleanup Continues
  • FOR EXAMPLE -- More than 5 Million pounds of radioactive and PCB-contaminated mixed waste were treated at the Toxic Substances Control Act Incinerator at Oak Ridge

• Stockpile Stewardship
  • Controlling and accounting for nuclear materials
  • Monitoring existing excess fissile material
  • Weapons monitoring
  • Spent Fuel Storage Issues

• Science and Technology -- DOE Labs
  • Transportation
    • Oak Ridge -- research and development on mobile air conditioning that is efficient and environmentally benign
    • Oak Ridge -- part of consortium with Big Three automakers and other DOE labs on car crash simulation research using massively parallel computers -- one project took 8 hours versus 48 hours previously required -- can provide structural information in early design stages so that crashworthiness can be built in

  • DOE R & D budget larger than most of largest industrial companies in the world --> $6.1 Billion
    • In 1992 was $6 Billion versus General Motors at $5.9 Billion (source: INSIDE R & D MAGAZINE)
    • DOE in unique position to support leadership in innovation

  • FOR EXAMPLE:
  • Semiconductor industry -- must maintain U.S. leadership in market -- DOE national security programs require domestic supply of semiconductors
  • DOE -- major investments in semiconductor R & D
    • 62 Cooperative R & D agreements with semiconductor companies
    • $100 Million cost-shared partnership with SEMATECH

CHATTANOOGA'S SUSTAINABLE ENGINE -- NOT YOUR FATHER'S CHOO-CHOO

• The sustainable train arrived here many years ago -- news media can help to chart the journey
• Tell the world that doing good and doing well CAN go hand in hand