Obama hails solar push, says climate debate is settled

US President Barack Obama has used his State of the Union address to hail the rush of solar energy, and to reinforce his view that the science of climate change is settled.

“The debate is settled. Climate change is a fact,” Obama said. “And when our children’s children look us in the eye and ask if we did all we could to leave them a safer, more stable world, with new sources of energy, I want us to be able to say yes, we did.”

Earlier, Obama had said the gas boom had helped the US get closer to energy independence than it had been.

He also praised the rapid progress of the solar industry, noting that homes and businesses were signing up at the rate of one every four minutes, and also called for the end to fossil fuel subsidies.

“Every four minutes, another American home or business goes solar; every panel pounded into place by a worker whose job can’t be outsourced,” he said.

“Let’s continue that progress with a smarter tax policy that stops giving $4 billion a year to fossil fuel industries that don’t need it, so that we can invest more in fuels of the future that do.

“And even as we’ve increased energy production, we’ve partnered with businesses, builders, and local communities to reduce the energy we consume.

“When we rescued our automakers, for example, we worked with them to set higher fuel efficiency standards for our cars. In the coming months, I’ll build on that success by setting new standards for our trucks, so we can keep driving down oil imports and what we pay at the pump.

“Taken together, our energy policy is creating jobs and leading to a cleaner, safer planet. Over the past eight years, the United States has reduced our total carbon pollution more than any other nation on Earth. But we have to act with more urgency – because a changing climate is already harming western communities struggling with drought, and coastal cities dealing with floods.

“That’s why I directed my administration to work with states, utilities, and others to set new standards on the amount of carbon pollution our power plants are allowed to dump into the air. The shift to a cleaner energy economy won’t happen overnight, and it will require tough choices along the way. “

He said he would cut red tape to help states get an estimated $100 billion of investment in factories powered by gas. He urged Congress to help encourage more more cars and trucks to shift from foreign oil to American natural gas.