Tag Archives: national journal

Dave Parker Natural Gas is a Natural Fit

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Dave Parker | 1 Comment


nationaljournalblog2 Natural Gas is a Natural FitRead my latest response on the National Journal’s Energy and Environment Experts blog to the question, “What significance does President Obama’s State of the Union address have for his administration’s energy and climate policy?”

What can President Obama do to address America’s concerns about climate change and energy policy?

The short answer is that, whether we are talking about creating jobs, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, being more energy efficient or increasing our energy independence, natural gas is a natural fit.   With this in mind, President Obama should consider several specific steps:

First, ensure continued access to our vast domestic natural gas resource base, especially the abundant shale gas that we are now producing.

Continued, steady production from these shale plays is a key component, not only in creating new jobs – often in areas of the country where jobs are desperately needed – but also in helping to foster greater price stability, which will help ensure a cost-effective means to meet the growing energy needs of our economy.   Increasing our efforts to maximize the many benefits of natural gas will also help to reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy.

Second, the president should make clear that natural gas must be a central part of any energy policy that the 112th Congress considers.  If Congress moves forward on a renewable or clean energy standard, natural gas should be included as a compliance option.  Policymakers should pursue a “smart energy” grid that ensures the right fuel mix is in place to achieve the greatest emissions reductions and energy savings.   The fuel mix in such a “smart energy” approach will require the increased use of natural gas in America’s homes and businesses.  And when used directly, natural gas delivers nearly three times more usable energy compared to electricity.

Third, he should look to our country’s rich supply of innovation and technological creativity to address some of our most pressing issues.   The United States is home to many of the world’s leading alternative energy and carbon-neutral researchers, creative thinkers and entrepreneurs.  Some are academics seeking to develop low-impact resources for idealistic reasons, while others are traditional energy companies looking to capitalize on the green energy market.  Both should be encouraged because fundamentally shifting the very concepts of energy and energy supply will be an expensive and long journey.

There is no “app” for clean energy, but there is a strategy and, given time, it will bear fruit:  (1) ensure access to America’s abundant, domestic natural gas resources; (2) draft a comprehensive energy policy that focuses on the effective utilization of natural gas; and (3) support and encourage the development of efficient, low-emission energy technologies.

Posted in energy, Natural Gas | Tagged | 1 Comment

Dave Parker Let’s get serious about natural gas

Posted on December 22, 2010 by Dave Parker | Comments Off


nationaljournalblog2 Lets get serious about natural gasRead my latest response on the National Journal’s Energy and Environment Experts blog to the question, “Is Natural Gas the Answer?”

Here in Washington, D.C., we have been hearing a lot about congressional Democrats and Republicans “working together” recently – as evidenced by passage of the recent bipartisan tax extension legislation.

After taking stock of its bruising midterm election losses, Democrats insisted that it is possible to find some common ground with newly ascendant congressional Republicans. Meanwhile, those very same Republicans, mindful of appearing too partisan, have said the very same thing – there is some common ground; we just need to work on it.

As the president recently noted, natural gas is clearly one of those non-partisan, common ground issues on which both Democrats and Republicans should be able to come together. Indeed, there are a number of steps the administration and Congress can take to act on this critical issue. First, ensure continued access to our vast domestic natural gas resource base, especially the abundant shale gas that we are now producing. Continued, steady production from these shale plays is a key component not only in creating new jobs but also in helping to foster price stability, which will ensure this valuable domestic resource can continue to effectively meet the growing energy needs of our economy while reducing our dependence on foreign sources. Shale gas can be produced in a safe and benign manner with appropriate environmental safeguards.

Natural gas must also be a central part of any energy policy that the 112th Congress considers. If Congress moves forward on a renewable or clean electricity standard, natural gas should be included as a compliance option. And although discussions often turn toward the “smart grid,” our policymakers should pursue a “smart energy” grid that ensures the right fuel mix is in place to achieve the greatest emissions reductions and energy savings. At least for the foreseeable future, the fuel mix in such a “smart energy” approach will require the increased use of natural gas, especially its direct use in America’s homes and businesses.

Indeed, America’s natural gas utilities and their residential and commercial customers have long led the way in reducing carbon emissions. While the number of residential households using natural gas increased from 38 million in 1970 to nearly 65 million today — an increase of more than 70 percent — overall residential consumption over that time has remained essentially flat.

This decline in residential gas usage per household is due to better insulated homes, more efficient appliances and conservation/efficiency programs that are implemented by natural gas utilities. Future policies should take these facts into consideration when developing goals to increase the efficiency of buildings and appliances.

Natural gas contributes to America’s economy too, from the hundreds of thousands of jobs held by those who work for local utilities, to those who are responsible for finding it and bringing it to market, to those who ensure the infrastructure is in place to make it all happen. Overall, there are nearly 3 million Americans employed either directly or indirectly by the natural gas industry, to say nothing of the countless millions of manufacturing and service-related jobs that are dependent on reliable energy. Utilities also contribute significant revenue to local tax bases and provide historically solid dividend income to shareholders, who are often customers of the local utility in which they invest.

The time to act is now. We applaud the administration’s new focus on natural gas’ many attributes because we know that this clean, abundant, efficient, American fuel can make a real difference right now and for future generations to come. We hope that Congress and the administration can find common ground to ensure America accelerates the great progress we have already made thanks to the increased use of natural gas in this country.

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Dave Parker Natural Gas is the Common Ground

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Dave Parker | 1 Comment


nationaljournalblog2 Natural Gas is the Common GroundRead my latest response on the National Journal’s Energy and Environment Experts blog to the question, “Can Obama Find Common Ground in Energy?”

America’s natural gas utilities agree with President Obama that natural gas represents an opportunity for common ground between Republicans and Democrats.

We have long argued that one of the best ways to grow American jobs, combat the effects of climate change and provide for the energy security of our country is to use the tools, technologies and resources already available. Natural gas is clearly one of those tools. It is abundant, affordable, domestic and the cleanest fossil fuel. It’s ready – right here, right now.

There are a number of steps the administration and Congress can take to move forward on this important issue, the first of which is to increase U.S. production of natural gas. Increased production is critical to America’s energy future; we need federal and state policies in place to permit environmentally responsible natural gas production and infrastructure development.

Natural gas should also be a central part of any energy policy that the 112th Congress considers. If Congress moves forward on a renewable or clean electricity standard, natural gas generation should be included as a compliance option.

America’s natural gas utilities and their customers have long led the way in reducing carbon emissions. While the number of residential households using natural gas increased from 38 million in 1970 to nearly 65 million today — an increase of more than 70 percent — overall residential consumption over that time has remained essentially flat. That is because residential natural gas users have cut their natural gas use, per household, by about 40 percent.

This decline in residential gas usage per household is due to better insulated homes, more efficient appliances and conservation/efficiency programs that are supported by natural gas utilities. Future policies should take these facts into consideration when developing goals to increase the efficiency of buildings and appliances, and reduce vehicle emissions.

Natural gas contributes to America’s economy too, from the hundreds of thousands of jobs held by those who work for local utilities or in America’s manufacturing industry, to those who are responsible for finding it and bringing it to market, to those who ensure the infrastructure is in place to make it all happen. Utilities also contribute significant revenue to local tax bases and provide historically solid dividend income to shareholders, who are often customers of the local utility in which they invest.

Whatever approach the president or Congress takes to address our country’s mounting energy issues, natural gas clearly must have a seat at the table.

Posted in Natural Gas | Tagged | 1 Comment

Dave Parker Focus on Low-Carbon Solutions

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Dave Parker | Comments Off


nationaljournalblog2 Focus on Low Carbon SolutionsRead my latest response on the National Journal’s Energy and Environment Experts blog to the question, “Is Climate Change Causing Wild Weather?”

The recent weather events making news across America and across the globe do indeed give us all reason to pause. Certainly there have been recent, unusual, and in some cases tragically destructive, weather patterns, but no unanimous consensus is possible as to whether the changes are to some degree a cyclical event or a total de-linkage from the past. Likewise there never will be consensus as to how much of the changing patterns are attributable to human activities. However, we as an industry—and as a country—need to thoughtfully plan for an energy-efficient, carbon-constrained and climate-focused future. Utilizing the premier fuel that is natural gas should be a cornerstone to any such energy plan.

AGA has long understood the importance of balancing the need to meet increasing energy demands with an awareness of our environmental stewardship. Our member utilities and their customers have long supported efforts that encourage conservation and efficiency and the responsible development of America’s abundant natural gas resources.

That said, the wide-ranging debate over climate change, while taking into account the concerns of the environmental community, must also allow for reasonable input from industries likely to be affected by any resulting environmental legislation or regulations.

This is all the more reason to promote the direct use of natural gas in America’s homes and business. Not only is natural domestically abundant—meaning it can meet our growing energy needs right now—but also it is the cleanest and most efficient of the fossil fuels. In fact from the wellhead to the burner tip, natural gas loses only about 10 percent of its useable energy. Even when used to generate electricity, natural gas is cleaner than other fossil fuels and it can provide reliable baseload power, unlike other clean energy forms such as wind and solar, which are more intermittent in nature.

These attributes only highlight the important, and intelligent, role that natural gas plays in providing reliable and low-carbon energy.

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