Engineering Inc. - September/October 2008 - 16

N based ethanol man- Jay Farrar dates, which have ch2m hIll been blamed for rising food costs. In addition to making the Bush tax cuts permanent on income, capital gains and dividends, the Arizona senator would reduce the estate tax from its planned 2009 rate of 45 percent to 15 percent, while also trimming the corporate tax rate—one of the world’s highest— from 35 percent to 25 percent, a move designed to make American companies think twice before moving operations offshore. energy and the environment o matter who gets in, you’re going to see more emphasis on climate change and energy efficiency legislation going forward. Like McCain, Obama also would establish a cap-and-trade program as an incentive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. His plan also includes a pledge to put 1 million domestically built hybrid cars on American roadways by 2015 and ensure that 10 percent of the nation’s electricity comes from renewable sources by 2012, increasing to 25 percent by 2025. future changes Faced with mounting concerns about the environment, both major-party candidates have proposed measures to reduce greenhouse gases, carbon footprints and fuel consumption. “EPA enforcement over these last years has waned a fair amount,” says Jay Farrar, senior vice president at Englewood, Colo.-based CH2M HILL. “No matter who gets in, you’re going to see more emphasis on climate change and energy efficiency legislation going forward.” Bucking the notion that Republicans are soft on the environment, McCain has introduced the Lexington Project, a sweeping energy proposal that aims to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, while exploiting clean, more environmentally friendly alternatives. As part of the plan, McCain advocates expanding domestic oil and natural gas production; offshore drilling; powering automobiles through means other than oil; and investing in clean, alternative sources of energy, including a proposal to construct 100 new nuclear power plants by 2030 and implement a permanent tax credit to 10 percent of wages spent on corporate research and development. McCain also proposes a cap-and-trade system aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by setting a cap on the amount of greenhouse gases companies can emit and allowing them to buy and sell their rights to emit, similar to the acid-rain trading program of the 1990s. Obama’s plan, titled New Energy for America, would create more than 5 million “green-collar” jobs by investing $150 billion over 10 years to advance the production of biofuels, renewable energy and clean coal and the training of people for careers in those sectors. He initially opposed new offshore drilling, as did McCain, but later said he would support it as part of a larger program to lower energy costs. 16 ENGINEERING INC. sEptEmbER / oCtobER 2008 No matter who takes the White House in November, changes to existing infrastructure and environment and energy policies appear imminent—and that’s good news for the engineering industry. Such reforms also require “more innovative approaches to how you design and engineer solutions in buildings, roads, rail, even water treatment plants,” says Farrar. “How do you create energy, manage it; how do you make those plants more efficient and at the same time reduce their carbon footprint? All those things require engineering know-how. A lot of companies will thrive on that.” “I think an Obama administration presents us with opportunities as well as challenges,” says Steve Hall, ACEC’s vice president of government affairs. “Looking ahead to 2009, with Democratic majorities in the House and Senate, a Democratic White House might offer us a new opportunity to secure significant funding increases during SAFETEA-LU reauthorization, as well as more federal funding for water infrastructure. “At the same time, the positions Obama has taken on such business issues as health care reform, taxes and contracting out suggest that we will have some work to do in protecting the interests of our cCain’s policies are Members.” designed to reward The same dilemma holds true companies that are already should McCain doing well, while obama’s prevail in Novempolicies create new ber. “On the infrastructure front,” says opportunities for business. Hall, McCain conJohn IronS tinues to favor the economIc PolIcy InStItute elimination of congressional earmarks. While I think some of our members would support the senator’s position here and give state departments of transportation more flexibility in how they spend federal funds, we’d also like to see a much more m
Engineering Inc. - September/October 2008

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