Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt to Announce Plan To Strengthen America’s Energy Future and Conservation Legacy

In what some are calling the most significant policy pledge of his second inaugural address, President Barack Obama called for balanced action to address climate change and to secure sustainable energy resources so that “we maintain our economic vitality and our national treasure -- our forests and waterways; our croplands and snowcapped peaks.”

In a National Press Club Newsmaker news conference scheduled for noon Tuesday, Feb. 5, former Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt will announce a new proposal to help translate the current energy boom into sustainable economic growth and improved stewardship of iconic landscapes for future generations. Babbitt will discuss opportunities for the Obama administration and Congress to implement the type of bold agenda for energy and conservation that Obama called for.

Babbitt’s plan comes amid growing attention on the rapid expansion of domestic oil and gas development nationwide. According to the International Energy Agency, the United States is on track to be the world’s largest oil producer and a net exporter of natural gas by 2020. But expanded development, including the use of hydraulic fracturing technologies, has also led to water quality concerns, loss of wildlife habitat and local movements to restrict energy development. Meanwhile, congressional efforts to protect land, water and wildlife have slowed to historic lows; the 112th Congress was the first in 70 years to fail to protect a single new acre of public land as a national park, national monument or wilderness area.

The Newsmaker takes place at the National Press Club in the National Press Building, 529 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.

Contact: Patti Giglio, NPC Newsmakers Committee/Host
202-903-7869, patti@psgcom.net