North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. PETERS. Mr. Chairman, my amendment to the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act will directly enhance reliable energy security when our communities are most vulnerable during natural disasters. My amendment simply adds energy storage as a form of energy that the Department of Energy should consider to improve emergency preparedness.

The bill in its current form only addresses the need to have resilient oil and natural gas infrastructure, which we certainly should all support.

Energy storage encompasses technologies capable of storing previously generated electric energy and releasing that energy at a later time. It can include various types of batteries, capacitors, fuel cells, and more and has the potential to improve electric power grids, enable growth in renewable electricity generation, and provide alternatives to oil-based fuels in the Nation's transportation sector.

Grid-level energy storage is on track to reach 40 gigawatts in capacity by 2022, a hundredfold increase from 2013.

And natural disasters are becoming more and more common. Over the last 4 years, the Federal Government has spent more than $136 billion on relief for hurricanes, tornados, droughts, wildfires, and other weather-related events.

We know that for every dollar we invest in preparedness and resiliency we save $4 in cleanup and restoration, not to mention the lives that would be saved--something we cannot put a dollar value on.

Building up community resiliency by including energy storage in preparation plans will save lives and save money.

In San Diego, our utilities, including SDG&E, are testing and developing energy storage to accommodate renewable energy, which makes up 33 percent of its power.

Our school districts, including Poway Unified School District, are adding large-scale battery storage to their campuses that go beyond California's energy efficiency guidelines to save money as heat waves and temperatures continue to spike.

And our companies and universities, including UCSD, are part of the California State public-private partnership, CalCharge, that is developing the next generation of energy storage.

Ensuring that we are better able to withstand extreme weather events with added energy storage is just common sense. Including energy storage in this bill is a smart, forward-thinking step to equip States and localities with the tools they need both in advance and in the aftermath of natural disasters.

I ask my colleagues to support the amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. PETERS. Mr. Chairman, my amendment to the North American Security and Infrastructure Act requires the Secretary of Energy to submit a report to Congress on the impact of captured methane converted for energy and power generation on Federal lands, buildings, and relevant municipalities.

The report would include a summary of energy performance and savings from using this power generation source and an analysis of the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

In my district in San Diego, we are putting innovative solutions to work to reduce methane emissions and create energy at the same time. At the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant, methane is collected and fuels two continuously running generators. Using the methane produced onsite, the wastewater treatment plant has not only become energy self-sufficient, but is also able to sell excess power that it generates to the local energy grid, enhancing grid reliability and energy efficiency.

Another positive example of converting captured methane to energy is at landfills. In the United States, we have over 1,900 landfills, and they are the third largest source of methane emissions in the United States. This pollution threatens air quality and the public health of communities located close to the landfills themselves.

In San Diego, the Miramar Landfill spans over 1,500 acres and has been operating since 1959. Some years ago, the city, the Navy, and the private sector worked together and installed a methane-capture and energy conversion plant to supply the neighboring Marine Corps Air Station Miramar with 13.4 megawatts of energy. This plant supplies half of the base's energy, allowing it to operate as a 911 base in case of an emergency or power outage. The technology also reduced the emission of pollutants from the Miramar Landfill by 75 percent.

My amendment will simply assess how capturing methane and using it to generate energy reduces emissions, puts America on the path to a lower carbon, renewable energy future, and shares best practices among facilities that might be able to participate. So I ask my colleagues to support the amendment.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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