CHAPTER IV: SELECTING THE APPROPRIATE PACE AND
LEVEL OF FEDERAL EFFORT

In your May 3, 1978, Sun Day speech, you called for a Domestic Policy Review (DPR) of solar energy.* Stuart Eizenstat followed on May 16 with a memorandum** defining its scope to include:

O a thorough review of the current Federal solar
programs to determine whether they, taken as a -
whole, represent an optimal program for bringing
solar technologies into widespread commercial use
on an accelerated timetable;

a sound analysis of the contribution which solar
energy can make to U.S. and international energy
demand, both in the short and the longer term;

recommendations for an overall solar strategy
to pull together Federal, State and private efforts
to accelerate the use of solar technologies.

Over

In response to this memorandum, an interagency Solar Energy Policy Committee under the chairmanship of the Secretary of Energy was formed to conduct the review. 100 officials representing more than 30 executive departments and agencies have participated since early June.

This review was conducted with significant public participation. Twelve regional public forums were convened throughout the Nation during June and July to receive public comments and recommendations on the development of national solar energy policy. The response of the public was impressive, and reflected the growing support for solar energy identified by several recent opinion polls. Several thousand people attended the meetings and over 2000 individuals and organizations submitted oral or written comments.

*For the purpose of this review, solar energy was broadly defined to be energy received from the sun directly in the form of radiant energy, and indirectly in the form of stored radiant energy in biomass (i.e., wood, vegetation and organic solid wastes), heated surface waters, the potential and kinetic energy of water elevated via the hydrological cycle, and the kinetic energy of the wind.

**See Appendix A.

ii

In addition, briefings were given to members of the Domestic Policy Review by representatives of solar advocacy groups, small businesses, state and local government, public interest and consumer groups, utilities, the energy industry and solar equipment manufacturers. This public input was an important part of the Review.*

In large part, themes reflected in the public comments are consistent with the findings of the DPR and the premises of the National Energy Plan. These premises include an emphasis on conservation as a cornerstone af national energy policy, awareness that energy prices should generally reflect the true replacement cost of energy, and recognition of the need to prepare for an orderly transition to an economy based on renewable energy resources. The public forum comments also reflected a deep concern that the poor and the elderly have access to affordable energy.

II. SUMMARY OF MAJOR FINDINGS

The results of the Domestic Policy Review can be summarized in nine major findings.

1.

Significant Potential Exists for Expanding the Nation's Use of Solar Energy. With appropriate private and government support, solar energy could make a significant contribution to U.S. energy supply by the end of this century. Renewable energy sources, principally biomass and hydropower, now contribute about 4.8 quads** or six percent to the U.S. energy supply. Since estimates of future energy supply and demand are imprecise, three generic forecasts of possible solar use were developed. They can be distinguished most readily by the level of effort that would be required to reach them. In the Base Case, where present policies and programs continue, solar energy could displace 10-12 of a total of 95-114 quads in the year 2000 if energy prices rise to the equivalent of $25-32 per barrel of oil in 1977

*Summaries of the public forum comments and the public responses to the DPR status report issued in early September are included in Appendices C and D.

**A quad is one quadrillion British Thermal Units (Btu) of

energy.