James R. Schlesinger, a leading expert
in the energy field and the first U.S. Secretary of Energy, spoke
yesterday evening at the Lyric about the nation’s energy crisis.
Schlesinger is also currently co-chairing a study for the Department
of Defense energy strategy. He articulated that consumption of oil as
an energy source in today’s society is a serious problem that will
not disappear in the near future, but rather demand immediate
attention.
“We are not going to reach energy
independence in this nation and have better control over our national
security as long as we remain dependent on the internal combustion
engine and air traffic to move people and goods,” Schlesinger said.
With $5 billion worth of oil being used
daily and the world’s existing oil fields in a decline of about 4%
a year, Schlesinger detailed three relatively immediate alternatives:
conservation, renewable resources and nuclear power. However, his
prediction that future demand for oil would mean finding the
equivalence of nine Saudia Arabia’s had more of an impact on the
crowd.
Sponsored by the
Dean’s Task Force on the Environment and the Dean’s Task Force on
Energy Security and Sustainability, the series hopes to raise
community awareness about the need to acknowledge the energy crisis
and its effects on the environment.
“As a
community, I would say Tech is already pretty savvy in regards to
issues with the environment,” said Joseph Merola, chemistry
department chair and member of the Task Force. “We hope to mobilize
the already-present research to higher degrees and inform Richmond
and Washington that resources placed at Tech for further research
would be well-placed indeed.”
Schlesinger is one of the six guests
invited to speak on campus during the months of February, March and
April. Speakers were selected based on their expertise within the
fields of energy and environmental policy.
“The Lyric is a
community theatre and it’s important for us to be part of the
conversation about the environment,” said Paolo Busante, night
manager of the Lyric. “We are quite proud to give back to the
community by helping to promote awareness.
For the last installment of the series,
Hans B. Püttgen, director of the Energy Center at Ecole
Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne in Switzerland, will speak on
Friday, April 13, at 2:30 p.m. in Torgersen 3100.
