Oilman Pickens stresses need for alternative fuels
Bailey McBride
Issue date: 4/8/09 Section: News
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"We have gotten out there, we have our oar in the water and this year we will have an energy plan," Pickens said. "College students are plenty smart, and if we can recruit them, we can work this problem out together."
Chancellor G. David Gearhart, who introduced Pickens, joked that "Texas oilmen are not usually known for their advancement of alternative energy, but T. Boone Pickens is not like most others."
Pickens was on campus to educate students about the "Pickens Plan" for energy independence, which can be accessed in full at Pickensplan.com. The plan calls for the use of natural gas, wind and solar power to replace foreign oil, using natural gas as a "bridge" for the next 20 to 25 years until another transportation fuel is developed.
"I have a friend who says, 'The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, but if you didn't, plant it now' - we have to get a plan for American energy now," Pickens said. "You either have a plan, or you get foreign oil."
Pickens indicated that already more than 50 congressmen, 15 senators and 200 mayors had signed a pledge to support the Pickens Plan for energy independence.
Pickens presented the audience, which filled not just the auditorium he was speaking in but also five other rooms, with numerous statistics and figures regarding the consumption of foreign oil in the United States.
During one of his famous white board presentations, Pickens claimed that 70 percent of the 21 million barrels of oil used in the United States daily comes from foreign countries. An estimated 85 million barrels of oil are produced daily, meaning that the United States, which accounts for around 4 percent of the global population, uses 25 percent of the oil produced daily.
"When the American people saw the price of oil jump in July 2008, I thought, 'Somebody is going to have to explain energy to these people,'" Pickens said. "We have nothing good going for us unless we change the direction we're going."
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