HOW CAN WE TIE ALTERNATIVE ENERGY INTO THE NATIONAL DEBT PROBLEM?

NATIONAL DEBT Some facts: As of April 3 rd 2015, the national debt is $18.2 trillion ($18,152,112,019,695) This amounts to $56,649 for every person in the U.S. $147,304 for every household By the end of the fiscal year, the U.S. owed 25.4 trillion in social security benefits, and 28.2 trillion in Medicare benefits For example, these three spending projects account for more than 40% of our spending (social security, Medicare, and medicade) Defense spending accounts for 22%

HOW CAN WE WORK TO FIX THIS PROBLEM Alternative energy options Hydro Wind Solar Geothermal Domestic oil The U.S. holds 2% of the worlds oil reserves Sell or use our own oil Stop relying on middle eastern oil

DOMESTIC OIL Spurred by the use of hydraulic fracturing or fracking in shale rock deposits, U.S. oil production has jumped from 5.0 million barrels per day in 2008 to 7.4 million last year and is expected to average 8.5 million this year and 9.3 million next year This boom, along with a rise in natural gas liquids production, has dramatically lowered petroleum imports The share of U.S. liquid fuels consumption met by net imports, down from 60% in 2005 to 33% in 2013, is expected to fall to 22% in 2015, which would be the lowest since The United States and Canada are expected to account for most of the world’s projected growth in production of oil and other liquid fuel through 2015 while China and less developed countries will drive most of the growth in consumption

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY Alternative energy is any energy source that is an alternative to fossil fuel Alternative energy sources are renewable and are thought to be "free" energy sources Biomass Energy, Wind Energy, Solar Energy, Geothermal Energy, Hydroelectric Energy The term "biomass" refers to organic matter that has stored energy through the process of photosynthesis Societies have taken advantage of wind power for thousands of years Solar energy is a free, inexhaustible resource, yet harnessing it is a relatively new idea Moving water is a powerful entity responsible for lighting entire cities, even countries Energy from the Earth What could be more natural or plentiful? The source of geothermal power is the heat contained inside the Earth; heat so intense that it creates molten magma

HOW CAN WE TIE THESE TOPICS TOGETHER? Use alternative energy options too lower the amount of oil we import every year Become completely self-reliant on our own oil Export oil to other countries More jobs within the alternative energy spectrum Sell alternative energy options to other countries