12th Annual U.S. Hydrogen Meeting Reaches New Heights

We would like to thank our sponsors for their invaluable part in the meeting’s success:

• Platinum Sponsor U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Power Technologies;
• Gold Sponsor NASA Kennedy Space Center;
• Silver Sponsors BP and Stuart Energy Systems;
• Bronze Sponsors Air Products and Chemicals, California Air Resources Board, DCH Technology, Ford Motor Company, Praxair, South Coast Air Quality Management District, Shell Hydrogen, Texaco Ovonic Hydrogen Systems, and U.S. MagneGas;  
• Industry Reception Sponsors BP, Nippon Sanso Corporation, Praxair, Shell Hydrogen, and Teledyne Energy Systems; and
• special Meeting Sponsor National Energy Technology Laboratory.

The increased support from both NHA members and friends in the hydrogen community provided NHA the leverage to put together its best annual meeting.

The Honorable Roscoe Bartlett, Chair of the Subcommittee on Energy of the House Science Committee and Representative for Maryland’s 6th District, pointed out the need for a long-range energy policy that would free the U.S. from price shocks and fluctuations. “The U.S. accounts for 25 percent of world oil consumption, yet controls only two percent of the world’s oil reserves,” he said in his keynote address on the first day of the meeting. “This is a recipe for disaster.”

In his position as Energy Subcommittee Chairman, Bartlett plans to introduce a Hydrogen Future Act reauthorization bill sometime after the President delivers his Fiscal Year 2002 budget. He believes it important to move towards the technology deployment stage and will include language to that effect in the bill.

The second day began with a keynote address from the Honorable Tom Harkin, U.S. Senator for the state of Iowa. He thanked the delegates for allowing him to return to speak at the NHA’s Annual Meeting and stressed his commitment to the hydrogen community. The Senator outlined four areas the government must concentrate on during the coming decade:

• begin transitioning to fuel cell power,
• enact substantial tax breaks for individuals and companies that invest in fuel cells,
• support demonstration projects to educate the public about the benefits of fuel cells and publicize available fuel cell technology, and
• drastically increase our budget for research and development.

Secondary School Invitational

In keeping with tradition, the Secondary School Invitational was held in conjunction with the annual meeting. Sentech, Inc., planned the daylong event and invited District of Columbia students from Hart and Backus Middle Schools to participate in the Invitational. Seventy-five eager students and five teachers attended and were taught scientific principles through innovative experiments. A student favorite was the hand-powered flashlight that demonstrated mechanical to electrical energy transformation. They were also shown a working model of a solar hydrogen system. George Thomas of Sandia National Laboratories gave a presentation on hydrogen storage. The Invitational ended with a career panel that included the NHA’s Jeff Serfass, Josh Phil of Sentech, and Linda Ulrich of BMW.

Four leaders in the hydrogen community were honored at an awards luncheon. Their efforts have touched all areas of hydrogen technology, including hydrogen safety studies, leadership of international code bodies, and public education. The honorees were Dr. David Block, Florida Solar Energy Center; Dr. Tapan Bose, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières; Mr. Richard Cromwell, SunLine Transit Agency; and Dr. Michael Swain, University of Miami. The NHA again congratulates their individual efforts to bring about a sustainable hydrogen economy.

The Capitol-themed Industry Reception included guest speaker Karen Kimball of the House Science Committee Staff. She delivered the remarks of California Representative Ken Calvert, a proponent of hydrogen in the U.S. House of Representatives, who was unable to attend. Ms. Kimball and other staff members are working diligently to ensure the introduction and passage of a bill that reauthorizes the Hydrogen Future Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. The NHA also hosted a Poster Session during the reception that allowed delegates the opportunity to speak directly with researchers about their work.

There is Congressional support on both sides of the aisle for hydrogen use as a fuel and alternative energy. The hydrogen community needs to harness that support and use it to our advantage. Both keynote speakers made reference to their belief that U.S. dependence on oil cannot continue. Collectively, we must work to maintain funding for the U.S. Department of Energy Hydrogen Program at levels commensurate with the strides in technology development. Hydrogen technologies are on the cusp of commercialization and deployment; together, as a community, we can ensure that these applications will reach full-scale deployment sooner rather than later.

On a more personal note, the NHA and the hydrogen community said farewell to the leadership of Robert Mauro, who is leaving the employ of Technology Transition Corporation. While he will still be active as the NHA Board of Director’s Technical and Policy Advisor through 2002, his day-to-day leadership within the association is ending. Karen Miller was elected Vice President of the NHA and will take on many of Bob’s responsibilities. Bob’s vision and leadership are greatly appreciated and we wish him the best in his new role. ©2001. All Rights Reserved. A Publication of the National Hydrogen Association.
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