In my previous blog post, I criticized the Unites States’ dependence on oil and natural gas due to the harmful environmental factors of such energy sources. This week, I chose to discuss the other side of the debate on oil and natural gas, how it benefits us and our country. Although it is obvious that the effects of fracking are not good for our environment, new methods for the extraction and production of natural gas are constantly being proposed that assure a reduction in the generation of greenhouse gases and other toxins.
If such safety concerns can be addressed, then natural gas could possibly become the United States’ largest source of electricity by as soon as 2030. In fact, gas power will almost entirely replace power once supplied by nuclear or coal plants. Since natural gas can be produced at such cheap costs throughout the United States, it also plays a significant role in improving in our economy. Producing more American energy will create new jobs, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, strengthen our national security and raise revenue to help tackle the $16 trillion national debt.
First off, the oil and natural gas boom has already created millions of jobs throughout the nation and is expected to create another 1.4 million jobs by the year 2030. Previously, the United States imported a majority of its oil from other areas of the world such as the Middle East, but with the abundance of natural gas available, this is no longer necessary. Since 2005, the United States has reduced its percentage of imported energy from 30 percent to 16 percent. By the year 2040, it is expected that only 4 percent of all energy in America will be imported from foreign nations. Clearly, this is bound to create countless jobs in an array of different industries. The natural gas boom creates many entry-level jobs such as drilling, pipeline, and distribution jobs in addition to various advanced positions, such as engineers. Although engineers make up a small percentage of the industry’s overall employment, they are still vital to the country’s natural gas production. Specifically, they create plans that detail how and where drilling should take place and they design the way that oil and natural gas are taken out of the ground.
The oil and gas boom has not only affected the U.S. job industry, but it has also served to significantly enhance the national security positioning of the United States. The energy boom has reduced the country’s dependence on unstable parts of the world such as the Middle East, and instead has provided the United States with more diplomatic freedom and influence. However, this will only be maintained if our government continues to take advantage of new opportunities to protect U.S. interests abroad and to protect sources of new found strength at home. In order to do this, policymakers must fight to maintain certain policies that support the continued use of natural gas throughout the United States.
Unfortunately, numerous environmentalists are constantly criticizing and arguing against the use of fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas. As these environmentalist groups become more active and gain more attention in the media, they are also shifting the views of policymakers. If they continue to significantly affect policy decisions regarding fossil fuel usage and production, America’s oil and natural gas boom could quickly come to an end. But, as long as the government continues making decisions based on economic factors, we can expect to see considerable improvements in our economy throughout the next few decades.
I do agree with your concept that pursuing American-produced energy sources would provide numerous jobs, economic benefits, and so on. Especially with the combination of today’s economy, international relations, and our growing need for energy supply, focusing on what you talk about here would bring about extremely beneficial results. That being said, however, I don’t know if I agree with what you said about the production of natural gas itself- I was not aware that it could be so easily produced, I thought that there was a finite amount under the Earth’s surface, and that once it’s depleted, it’s gone. Now if there actually is a way to produce natural gases that we use for energy above the surface, then I think I would agree with your post more. But if there is only a finite amount, then I think we should focus more on developing other types of energy. Doing so could provide the jobs you mention as well, and hopefully not have as much of a negative environmental impact. as harvesting natural gas. But please don’t think that I don’t agree with your post at all, because that’s not true! I agree in that I don’t think that we should be ignoring the natural gas industry like environmental activists are trying to get us to do, because it’s a huge industry! And if the US continues to rise internationally as a provider of energy and jobs, the natural gas industry will play a huge role in that. I just think that we shouldn’t shift the focus entirely onto natural gas and not look into other energy sources at all.
There are always two sides to every issue, and I am glad that you explored both sides of the use of oil and natural gas as an energy source within our nation. No matter which side the issue is viewed from, there are both benefits and disadvantages. On the environmental front, it is easy to see the harmful effects of fracking and burning fossil fuels for energy. As you stated, this seems to be the most available view of the use of natural gas and oil as energy because environmentalists make sure that their views are seen and heard throughout the nation. However, the economic side of the issue is one that should seriously be considered as you have proven.
With every new technology, the kinks need to be worked out. As long as new, safer techniques for fracking are found that do less harm to the environment, I can see why natural gas would become the nation’s largest energy source by 2030. The change is not an overnight one and the effects will be gradual which provides much room for improvement throughout the years. The economic gains that accompany these energy methods cannot be forgotten. Our nation is still recovering from the Great Recession, and the creation of many new jobs will benefit our economy greatly. 1.4 million is a big number and this amount of jobs could provide significant gains. In addition to the new jobs, our ability to domestically provide all but 4% of our own energy is great for the economy as it will reduce costs that would rise due to importing energy.
With that being said, I understand both the environmental side of the issue and the economic side of the issue. The major question for the government, though, is which side of the issue is more important to support?
With the omnipresent criticism of natural gas, this take on natural gas is almost original. Of course, there are many legitimate concerns regarding the use of natural gas, which should not be disregarded lightly. However, as you mentioned, once the issues are address, natural gas may be very advantageous indeed. The advantages you mentioned may outweigh the disadvantages that may soon be solved however. With a desperate need for jobs and increased national security, the use of natural gas has significant advantages that aren’t as superficial as, say, stimulating green energy startups in California simply to appear to be fostering cool, new solutions to the very real problem of energy extraction. I too worry that an opportunity may be missed if negative sentiment regarding natural gas spreads. I can’t help but wonder if America will lose yet another opportunity to those who put more weight in smaller problems that may simply be resolved concurrently of exploiting such an opportunity.
Natural gas is poised to become America’s main energy source because it is so cheap. And as you have pointed out, natural gas is really good for our country from an economic perspective; it eliminates our dependence on foreign oil and creates more jobs. The former reason is really important because the price of oil is extremely volatile and can severely impacts other prices and wages. And with America still trying to recover from the aftershock of the Great Depression, more jobs are also a necessity. Moreover, we can reduce some of the environmental concerns related to fracking by improving our fracking techniques. Recently, I read about a new fracking technique that substitutes water with another fracking fluid (http://techland.time.com/2013/11/14/the-25-best-inventions-of-the-year-2013/slide/waterless-fracking/). This technique is cheaper, poses no threat to the local drinking water supply and is also more efficient than traditional fracking. In spite of all this, I still don’t support fracking and other fossil fuels because they are not a reasonable long term solution. There is going to be a point in the future when we’ll be running out of fossil fuels very quickly and then we’ll have to depend on alternative energy.
Interesting hearing about the other side– everyone is always critiquing this industry, so this is definitely a fresh new take at things that I have not seen more recently. Also, great news about the jobs that are being created. Interesting post!
The jobs created in the short term are great but are they worth it economically in the long run? Investing in natural gas production would be continuing our dependance on fossil fuels, which sooner or later is going to run out, or be too bad for the environment that we have to stop use of them completely. As a result, we have thousands of employees in this field who are unemployed and have nothing to do until they retrain themselves. That would put an even bigger strain on the struggling economy. Look at the coal towns of West Virginia, they are some of the poorest areas in our country and they keep getting worse. The situation could turn out to be the same with natural gas production.
Continuing the investment of natural gas technology is also bad because it puts us way behind the rest of the world in energy technologies. While everyone else is investing in green techniques, such as wind and solar energy, we are still using the old ways. When we can’t use them anymore we then have to use foreign technology to support our energy infrastructure.
Supporting green energy now means we are at the forefront of creating green energy technologies. It also gives the people going into natural gas production a chance to have a job that can be supported throughout their lifetime. These technologies can also benefit the economy because if ours become advanced enough, other countries will begin to want to use them, and we could sell it to them.
I understand you are just presenting a counter argument to your original post, I just don’t think it is economically feasible or worth it in the long run. It may have short term benefits but it does not help anything in the long run.
Of course this country needs economic relief, so job stimulation and more energy sources sound great, I hope things only get better as time goes on