Energy and Environment
Overview
Our nation is too dependent on foreign oil. Instead of sending money overseas to unfriendly regimes, we must consider all options to power our country now and in the future. With old-fashioned American innovation and ingenuity, I believe that we can find new, clean solutions for the 21st century.
Right here in Tennessee, we already know first-hand how alternative energy solutions can create jobs and boost local economies. Companies like Wacker Chemie AG, Shoals Technology Group, and Nissan have invested across the state in solar power technology, electric automobiles, and advanced batteries. It is no surprise that Tennessee is leading the way toward a safe, clean energy future.
Protecting the environment is a responsibility we owe our children and grandchildren. I have one of the strongest environmental records in the South and consistently receive high ratings from groups such as the League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. I have long supported legislation to strengthen the Endangered Species Act, protect our public lands and national parks, and defend the Clean Air Act against partisan attacks. My advocacy of cap-and-trade goes back to 1990, when I helped craft an amendment to the Clean Air Act that dramatically reduced acid rain. Every nation must take drastic measures to reduce pollution and address climate change; it’s time Congress stopped dragging its feet.
Links & Additional Information
House Committee on Energy and Commerce
House Committee on Natural Resources
Tennessee's Department of Environment and Conservation
Tennessee's Office of Energy Programs
U.S. Department of Energy
U.S. Energy Information Administration
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
More on Energy and Environment
Published in the Tennessean
Nashville is about to lose one of its few beaches, a small part of Old Hickory Lake, and even risk harming the dam itself. Why? Because a local developer wants to blast a new quarry in the wrong place, on land touching the beach and the dam.
Tennessee State House Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee Hearing
U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper’s Testimony on HB 2292, the Dam Safety Act
March 8, 2016
JIM COOPER: Thank you Chairman Lollar, members of the committee. I am deeply grateful for your distinguished service to our state.
CHAIRMAN LOLLAR: Please quote your name.
Keep quarry near Old Hickory Dam from harming Nashville
The Tennessean
October 8, 2015
By Jim Cooper
What would happen to Nashville if one of the dams failed up the Cumberland River?
Welcome to our #coopergraphics page. No fancy graphic designers here, just a staff trying to make infographics about what's going on in Congress. We're always looking for new ideas, so send us an e-mail if you have suggestions or questions.
What's an Earmark?
Voting Record on Park Issues Earns National Friends Award
WASHINGTON—Congressman Jim Cooper has been honored with the Friend of the National Parks Award from the nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) for his contribution to protecting and enhancing America’s national parks. The award was presented to 157 representatives currently serving in the 113th Congress for their support of legislation during the 112th Congress that upheld the standards and integrity of the National Park System.
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed the Freedom to Fish Act (S.982). Rep. Jim Cooper (TN-05) is a co-sponsor of the bipartisan bill, which would ensure that the public can access tailwaters below dams for fishing on the Cumberland River.
Rep. Jim Cooper (TN-05) and Sen. Dick Durbin (R-IL) held a roundtable yesterday in Nashville to discuss recent voting issues in Tennessee, the Senate immigration proposal, and the Marketplace Fairness Act. Durbin is the Senate Majority Whip and a member of the influential, bipartisan “Gang of Eight” Senators who recently introduced a proposal to overhaul our broken immigration system.
Nashville student's letter on energy legislation garners results
The Tennessean
April 20, 2013
By Andy Humbles
Fiona Murphey wanted to do something to improve the environment.
So the 13 year-old student at West End Middle School took the very American step of writing her congressman.