Clean Tech Nation: How the U.S. Can Lead in the New Global Economy

In this follow-up to their 2007 book, The Clean Tech Revolution, clean energy experts Pernick and Wilder are clearly glass half-full kind of guys, and readers inclined to optimism about the future will find much encouraging material. However, Pernick and Wilder offer precious little to convert pessimists, whether about the merits of the numerous proposals to use energy more cleanly and efficiently, or the ability of the federal government to get meaningful things done. Mixing anecdotes, facts, and charts with trenchant analysis, the authors point out, for example, how energy independence for the U.S., both as a national security issue and an economic one, should be supported, even by skeptics. Many fascinating innovations are underway, including the development of smart electrical grids, which by providing consumers detailed analytics about their electrical consumption, enable households to save 1.5%–3.5% per month (a modest number until the impact of applying such technology nationwide is projected at total savings of $5 billion per year). As fascinating as this survey of the current state of play is, the authors don’t quite end up justifying the book’s subtitle; to the contrary, they cite a Thomas Friedmanesque flat world to suggest that clean technology breakthroughs will “bloom in a thousand places,” rather than depending on one dominant superpower. Agent: Riverside Creative Management. (Sept.)