The technology is within our grasp to create an energy future independent of oil, U.S. Sec. of Energy Dr. Steven Chu last week told a gathering of the American Leadership Forum. He warned, however, that if America fails to embrace this vision of the future, the pitfalls could be tremendous. Chu was in Mountain View to accept the ALF’s 2011 Exemplary Leader Award, and his words came during an extended onstage discussion with Audubon President David Yarnold. (Pictured at left, Audubon President David Yarnold, with Energy Secretary Steven Chu)

Chu noted that within the next decade or two, improvements in technology will allow many renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind to be comparable in price to oil and gas. Battery technology will soon make it possible for electric vehicles to travel 400 miles on a charge at a competitive price.

He said that the United States is well suited to win the race to develop these technologies, but that there are those in our leadership who don’t see this as a priority, who still believe that oil will come back down to $30 a gallon. “Sometimes the most challenging thing is to convince people to choose the obvious,” he said.

Yarnold talked about the bruising debate over climate change legislation last year, and asked the Secretary of Energy if he thought this vision of technological investment was within the capabilities of a Washington culture obsessed with reducing expenditures.

Chu expressed hope that the discussion around renewable energy in the future would be less around ideology than around simple economics. “The thing that will persuade Americans to embrace this will be the potential to create jobs that reach the whole of America.”

He added that one of the great lessons he’s learned in his two years in Washington is to be aware of what motivates people. He said that initially, all he wanted to talk about was climate change, but that he quickly realized that there were other ways to talk about the issues. For instance, he could just as easily talk about the need to remain competitive with China, which is making serious investments in renewable technology.

“If there are three reasons to do something, and one resonates with a particular audience, the message is still the same,” he said.

Yarnold asked if the crisis stabilizing Japanese nuclear plants following last month’s earthquake would have an impact on America’s goals for a low carbon future.

“It can’t help but affect it,” Chu said, “But it’s important to recognize that other sources of energy also have risks, such as offshore oil drilling. We have to weight the relevant risks of anything that we do, but we can’t make a snap decision based on a single event.”