Western governors discuss "race for energy technology" in Whitefish, Montana

Exciting new technologies may answer the nation’s long-term energy needs, but investors prefer proven tools and are likely to put their short-term money behind traditional oil, gas and coal.

That leaves government to help drive innovation, and on Wednesday state leaders received a primer on how to do just that during the annual Western Governor’s Association http://www.westgov.org/ meeting. Held in Whitefish this year, the three-day meeting is chaired by Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and marks WGA’s 100th anniversary.

Western states have long served as storehouse for much of the country’s energy resources, and focus has been on how best to dig for coal and drill for oil.

But now the federal government has a new agency – the Advanced Research Projects Agency http://www.darpa.mil/ – aimed at brainstorming tomorrow’s high-tech energy solutions. It is, said director Arun Majumdar, not unlike the forward-looking programs that appeared in the late 1950s, in response to the Soviet launch of Sputnik.

"I believe we are in a Sputnik-like moment," Majumdar said, noting that the nation cannot afford to fall behind in the race for energy technology.

By MICHAEL JAMISON of the Missoulian

Full Story: http://missoulian.com/news/local/article_dc53e6ee-82f0-11df-8d3f-001cc4c03286.html