High efficiency is the goal in business and sports, so why not in energy? People can then boast: “My hybrid gets better mileage and air conditioning than your fuel cell coupe.” Or, “My hydrogen car is cleaner.”

As consumers we have available high efficiency appliances, houses, lights, and computers, which are energy and money savers after an initial small investment. Clearly, energy efficiency pays off with big bucks. Why then are most Americans not taking advantage of these energy-saving devices?

Energy inefficiency tarnishes the image of the United States as a technological leader. Surely a country that can land vehicles on Mars can make sexy, high efficiency vehicles for earthbound humans.

Oil is in everything we use in our daily lives – food, clothing, buildings and vehicles – and makes possible the high standard of living many of us enjoy. Americans consume more than twice the energy that our country supplies. But, as recent history shows, imported oil is not a secure energy source. Our U.S. supply of oil peaked 34 years ago in 1970, and we’ve been importing more energy to meet our demand ever since. At some approaching date our access to imported oil will peak also, meaning that the price will be shockingly high and we will be forced to use less.

High efficiency can reduce our oil dependence and postpone future oil price shocks while saving money and generating jobs. Renewable energy jobs require three times more local skilled labor than the fossil fuel jobs, and they are clean energy jobs that cannot be out-sourced to OPEC or India.

Everybody wins by getting new high efficiency, durable products -- manufacturers, consumers, and even the oil companies. We become a more secure nation by not importing more oil and not exporting petro dollars to potentially anti-American oil-producing regions. This would look good to our balance of payments as well as to our bottom line

Our environment and the one we leave for our children will benefit two ways. First the soot and smog that directly affects our health will be reduced. Second the carbon dioxide that is changing our planet’s climate will be decreasing instead of increasing toward an uncertain, but probably dangerous condition.

Unfortunately, our government currently provides incentives for us to be inefficient and to consume more. That is not smart.

In fact, actions of the U.S. Congress are providing disincentives for energy efficiency. For example, Congress has provided the loophole of 6,000 pound vehicle tax breaks Depending how you choose to count, the subsidies for energy are now equivalent to $5 to $15 per gallon of gasoline. These subsidies could be eliminated, but instead the current energy bill increases subsidies for fossil fuels.

A simple tax on the carbon content of fossil fuels would provide a market mechanism for moving our country to high efficiency and energy independence. A carbon tax is good for the environment and easy to apply to fossil fuels at the mine, well or border. Taxing “bads” like fossil carbon can reduce the taxes on “goods” like income, and certainly any regressive component of such a tax can be mitigated elsewhere in the tax system.

New York could become a leader in high efficiency. It would be good for New York since the state has no great sources of fossil fuels and exports more than $30 billion each year for energy. New York has sufficient sunshine for free solar house heating, has some wind power and growing wind farms as well as existing hydro electricity sources.

New York also is a growing presence in research and development in high-tech, high efficiency systems such as fuel cells, solar photovoltaic cells, electrical inverters. With the help of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority the state also is a leader in educating the public on the means and benefits of energy efficiency. Govenor Pataki has spoken of a plan toward energy independence, and it might become a New York economic powerhouse by preparing for, and delaying, future oil price shocks

You might think that these energy questions should be left to the professionals -- the U.S. oil companies. Our oil companies have burned off more than 250 trillion cubic feet, lowest estimate, of natural gas. Their economic policy has wasted more gas than the country used over the last 10 years. Clearly oil interests are not national interests.

My wife and I own a solar home. It is connected to the grid so our PV panels put power into the NiMo grid making electricity more reliable for all. Some solar houses are not grid-connected, and are even more energy independent. There is something quite satisfying about providing a large portion of your home’s energy needs yourself. Not only is it money in our pockets, but it contributes to lessening pollution, the trade deficit, and international strife.

The country needs a policy of preemptive high efficiency.

The good effects of high efficiency impact everyone as do the bad effects of inefficiency. We can embrace the change and benefit in its new markets, security, and cleaner environment.