ALEXANDRIA -- United States Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., today addressed attendees of the "Summit on Sustainability" in Alexandria, La. She discussed sustainable energy production and "Smart Growth" — a planning concept that promotes economic development without compromising the long-term environmental and ecological health of our communities.

"It is equally unsustainable to depend largely on oil and gas from unfriendly regions of the world, as it is to believe that we can rely on oil-based supply forever," Sen. Landrieu said. "In the short term, I am a strong advocate of producing more of our energy here at home. We can drill off our coasts safely and in accordance with our highest environmental standards. We also need to seriously invest in alternative fuels that are produced in America, such as biofuels that are made from agricultural waste — not food. Electric vehicles also show great promise, as does nuclear energy.

"I believe we can manage our spent nuclear fuel more intelligently than we have in the past. That is why I worked with my friend Senator Domenici of New Mexico just last week to introduce the SMART Act, which will ensure that we wisely manage our spent fuel, and ultimately recycle it. Increasing our use of nuclear energy is the only way America can meet our increasing energy demands while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

In addition to discussing sustainability in energy production, Sen. Landrieu also spoke about reducing the amount of energy America consumes through adopting more energy efficient energy codes, as Louisiana has. She discussed the importance of Smart Growth, a type of community planning for which she has been a leading advocate, and for which she has secured funds for communities' promotion of these planning efforts.

"We know we have some assets in this state, but we have not always known how to capitalize on them," Sen. Landrieu said. "With good planning, we can ensure that our sense of community never dissipates."

Alexandria Mayor Jacques Roy was also instrumental in hosting the first-ever Summit on Sustainability.

"From nurseries in Forest Hill to the beautiful streetscape in Natchitoches, our region has much to offer if we work together toward sustainable growth," said Mayor Roy. "That means supporting each other and avoiding the temptation to be isolationist in approach to economic development and scarce resources. We work best together, supporting each other on our individual strengths in the region.

"In a way, our region was destined for greatness. Our region's story provides clues to what Smart Growth is all about (and not about)—and what must be addressed. At the turn of the century and before, Alexandria and central Louisiana were models of traditional American planning.

"What we now call 'new urbanism' was the order of the day in downtown Jena and Alexandria many years ago. After depressions, wars, the advent of the automobile (and its singular contribution to changing the makeup of cities), perhaps some strategic misses politically decades ago, and urban flight, Alexandria and the region like much of America became less of a sustainable model. Haphazard planning and suburban sprawl were the order of the last half of the twentieth century.

"Following the last 20 years of inching forward and development of objective criteria for sustainable planning, we are once again poised to take the lead. "