The government's freshly minted plan for addressing global warming relies almost exclusively on technology but overlooks the equally important aspect of conservation. It's great to pledge to spend $3 billion per year on research in the hopes that technology will help to produce cleaner skies.

But the Climate Change Technology Program Strategic Plan won't spend enough to get the job done without better use of our resources. According to one researcher quoted in the Washington Post, a serious commitment to technology requires hundreds of billions of dollars per year.

Politicians are loathe to mention anything that could restrain the economy or compromise our way of living in an election year, but we can reduce the amount of greenhouse gases by being energy efficient using existing technologies. You don't have to give up travel or shiver in the cold to lower your energy bill. There are dozens of methods for conserving energy that all pay for themselves within a few years.

The President's plan should set goals and provide incentives for increasing energy efficient starting next year, and starting with the federal government. Each department should be required to reduce its energy use by 2 percent per year for the next five years, and funding should be provided for the equipment and materials to do so. By getting its house in order, the federal government would lead by example and save taxpayer dollars in the process.