Posted on 05/10/2009 11:59:52 AM PDT by neverdem
WASHINGTON — Cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells, once hailed by President George W. Bush as a pollution-free solution for reducing the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, will not be practical over the next 10 to 20 years, the energy secretary said Thursday, and the government will cut off funds for the vehicles’ development.
Developing those cells and coming up with a way to transport the hydrogen is a big challenge, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in releasing energy-related details of the administration’s budget for the year beginning Oct. 1. Dr. Chu said the government preferred to focus on projects that would bear fruit more quickly.
The retreat from cars powered by fuel cells counters Mr. Bush’s prediction in 2003 that “the first car driven by a child born today could be powered by hydrogen, and pollution-free.” The Energy Department will continue to pay for research into stationary fuel cells, which Dr. Chu said could be used like batteries on the power grid and do not require compact storage of hydrogen.
The Obama administration will also establish eight “energy innovation hubs,” small centers for basic research that Dr. Chu referred to as “Bell Lablettes.” These will be financed for five years at a time to lure more scientists into the energy area.
“We’re very devoted to delivering solutions — not just science papers, but solutions — but it will require some basic science,” Dr. Chu, who won...
--snip--
He said he would probably reverse another Bush administration decision and restore funds for FutureGen, a program to build a power plant prototype. The plant would turn coal into gas, separate out the carbon dioxide — a major contributor to the greenhouse gases that cause global warming — and pump it underground. Then it would burn the hydrogen, which is nearly pollution-free...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Besides taking every possible opportunity to undo decisions made by GWB's administration, why don't they repeal the Second Law of Thermodynamics?
its more of a rebranding than an undo
“Cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells, once hailed by President George W. Bush as a pollution-free solution for reducing the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, will not be practical over the next 10 to 20 years, the energy secretary said Thursday, and the government will cut off funds for the vehicles’ development.”
If one believes that electric cars are our future (I’m not one of those folks) then fuel-cell powered electric cars is probably the only way it can be done and end up with a vehicle that is recognizable in performance as compared with any of todays internal-combustion powered vehicles.
I suspect that in the end, it’s not how it’s powered, but the fact that folks want something larger than a golf-cart that is the problem.
yet another issue which bozo and his ilk are undermining everything Bush did
It must really grate the left that Bush kept us safe and Iraq was successful. They might go on about how some want bozo to fail but the fact is the left wanted Bush to fail in protecting us and in Iraq
If one person thinks for one minute bozo is a friend of this country then I despair.
Soros has bought the presidency and used his puppet to lead his agenda while having his foot soldiers like move on and ACORN do their intimidation
Hitler and Stalin would be proud of how the left have manipulated the public with their propaganda and how they have took over.
GEEEEZ!!.......Was Bush ever wrong on that!
The vehicles of the future will be powered completely by .... Barack Obama's ego!!
I have 3 kids, a dog and a wife.
How the hell am I supposed to be able to afford a 20 grand car to save money on Gas(doesn’t make sense) but how do I get hem with luggage in there on a trip somewhere.
I cannot
Yesterday I saw an old couple from palm beach driving their brand new Jaguar convertible with an obama sticker
I guess they also live in a big house, bigger than they need, they have their A/C on very cold and never go cold while their grass is very nice green from all the watering.
I bet they have no idea the irony of their lifestyle and who they support
Course the left have never had much in the way with brains and instead do things what they have been told to do from the media or what they perceive as cool or chic
those who have guns, are religious, are rich or live in a mcmansion and many do in the north east who voted for this buffoon .
I just hope they get hit first with their taxes, heating and A/C bills along with gas for their big engined luxury car/boats private planes etc
Well, I never thought fuel cells made any sense UNLESS they developed nuclear power plants to charge them up.
But I also don’t know if it makes sense to eliminate ALL research into fuel cells at once. How about just cutting back on it?
And how about those nuclear plants.
The problem of course, is not only that Obama wants to reverse everything Bush did, but he wants these efforts to fail. He wants to make us more dependent on imported oil, not less. Which isn’t too far from what the Democrat plan has been ever since Jimmuh Carter.
Chu, of course, is a total jackass, which is why Obama chose him to be energy Czar.
Bush funded this because he knew that an all electric car would be too small for our automakers to make money off of.
What this administration doesn’t understand is, the UAW makes the production of small cars in this country impossible.
If you want small cars you have to build them in another part of the country and where the UAW isn’t there.
Bush was being nice to them, trying to provide the UAW (his political enemies) with jobs. I don’t think the Democrats are going to be as nice.
The list, ping
Hydrogen fuel cell cars hold a great deal more potential than do embryonic stem cells. Yet, they will fund that research.
Electric cars have a limited range and in hilly areas, that drops drastically. Hybrids are a little better, but fossil fuels are still used.
This is pure BDS from the Obama cabal to the detriment of the nation.
“The obama administration will develop ‘eight innovation energy hubs’”
Why do I get the “soylent green” feeling that these will exist to turn the elderly, frail and aborted babies into an alternative enery? It will be patriotic to give lives so that others may use their microwaves or drive to worship the “one”.
The REAL problem is that Zero has no serious interest in beating the muzzies!!!!
At this point, no one can predict what will be the most successful advanced, PRACTICAL renewal energy technologies. Putting all ones eggs in one basket—”plug-in hybrids” (for which current battery technology is not practical)—makes no sense. That is, it makes no sense to those of us who want 1. to get us independent of islamic oil in order to help CRUSH Muhammadan world domination, and 2. to make the US the leader in advanced energy technologies, thus helping to foster American jobs and a vibrant US economy based on manufacturing, NOT financial services.
Barack Hussein Obama is not on board of either one of these goals. More’s the pity!!!!
Why doesnt Dr. Chu realise that windmills and solar power,will be at least that long before they produce any energy that we can economically use.
The reason for this came across FR a few hours ago-
US government to lease GM hydrogen cars for $84,000 a year.
I’m Html ignorant so it was posted somewhere around 9:00.
Fuel cells are the engines of the future, at least of a decent future. It has already appeared, though, that this administration has other ideas.
Looks like the hydrogen lobby failed to INVEST in the Obama campaign.
The left saw that Bush was well on his way to becoming an American hero shortly after 9/11.
With a shock, they realized that this meant Repubs in power potentially for decades.
Therefore, they poured EVERYTHING they had into lies, deceit, propoganda, pure evil to fool the public into thinking Bush was something he was not. This tactic worked on both liberals AND conservatives.
They will get theirs, in time. These evil people (like Emmanuel) can't stand up under such lies for long. At some point, those closest to them will see that their duplicity is a way of life and everyone gets burned by it eventually. The hatred will eat its own.
What the heck are you talking about? They will just give them money with no expectation to produce anything.
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