Big Oil and Dirty Coal Use Could Cost Trillions By 2030

6/30/2009 10:00:00 PM

$30 trillion figure is four times earnings of all Americans in 2007….

Washington, DC, June 29, 2009 -- Between 2010 and 2030, the United States will spend as much as $30 trillion on oil, coal, and other fossil fuels - nearly four times the total earnings of all American workers in 2007 according to a new report "The High Cost of Fossil Fuels: Why America Can’t Afford to Depend on Dirty Energy" by Environment America, which analyzes government data on energy. The United States is on track to spend as much as $1.3 trillion on oil alone in 2030, 78 percent of the nation’s total spending on fossil fuels. The national bill for fossil fuels in 2008 exceeded $1 trillion for the first time ever – more than was spent on education or the military. And by 2030, the U.S. could spend as much as $1.7 trillion per year on fossil fuels. “This Independence Day, we are calling on Congress to break our dependence on Big Oil and Dirty Coal,” said Emily Figdor of Environment America.  “Instead of allowing the costs of fossil fuels to continue to mount, Congress should repower America with clean, renewable energy that will create jobs and stop global warming.”  The report states that by 2030, the US could spend as much as $1.7 trillion per year on fossil fuels – an additional $1,500 for every man, woman, and child nationwide.  The report also includes state-by-state data.  Reflecting on the passage June 24th of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (H.R. 2454) by the House, Figdor said, “while the dramatic shift we need in our energy policy and the dire scientific predictions regarding global warming demand that we go much further, the first step is always the hardest.  We learn to walk before we can run; this historic act by Congress gets us up on our feet and heading toward a clean energy economy.”

Learning Center

oil study carbon pricing economics