No Slim Pickins for Farmers WASHINGTON (July 21, 2008)—It’s hard to believe that a lifelong oilman would be the one to throw cold water in the country’s face about our oil addiction. But that’s exactly what’s happened, and this Texan energy tycoon has given renewable energy supporters a big shot in the arm. Recently, T. Boone Pickens announced his "Pickens Plan" for weaning America off foreign oil, and this week he’ll be in front of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to discuss his vision, which looks to bolster wind power and natural gas use. Legislative details of the Pickens Plan have yet to surface, but America’s farmers are intrigued. That’s because they know that rural America will be at the heart of any energy strategy that trumps foreign oil. “Whether it’s ethanol, cellulosic solutions, or wind power, farmers hold the key to America’s energy future,” said Roger Moore, a Minnesota corn grower who not only is invested in a local wind farm, but a nearby ethanol facility and a biodiesel plant as well. “Farm country is the promised land of clean renewables.” He noted that Minnesota is one of the country’s biggest wind power producers. “America has a real problem and if we don’t fix it, this nation will be flat broke in 10 years,” he continued. “Curbing our oil addiction must be the top priority of our government.” And lawmakers are really starting to respond. The farm bill that just became law makes one of the biggest federal energy investments that the Heartland has ever seen. That bill provides more than $1 billion in mandatory funding for energy development and includes authorization for even more funding in the future. Some of the bill’s highlights: $225 million for grants and loan guarantees for renewable and efficiency projects; $320 million in loans for biorefineries, loans that will foster new technologies for new fuel sources like cellulosic ethanol; $300 million to producers to support and expand new biofuels beyond traditional corn ethanol; and Investments in studies to help foster energy production. Tom Dorr, the USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development, is among the biggest cheerleaders for renewable energy. In a May speech, Dorr had this to say: “[F]rom a USDA Rural Development standpoint, we view biofuels as probably the greatest new opportunity for economic development and wealth creation in rural America in our lifetimes. We are excited to be a part of and a major financer of the renewables revolution.” Dorr is also a vocal supporter of increased wind power in rural America, saying earlier this month in Houston, “Wind power has reached liftoff in the United States. The task ahead is large. It will challenge all of us. But together we will get it done.” For rural America’s sake, let’s hope so. New energy developments will give local economies a needed boost. Tapping the wind corridor in between Texas and North Dakota could produce 20 percent of the nation’s electricity, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. And that would mean $475 million to $562 million in leases to rural landowners, says a 2007 report by the National Farmers Union. “America’s farmers are ready to lead America’s energy revolution,” Moore concluded. “We just need to make sure our elected officials continue to provide the tools needed to get the job done.”