Western Energy Alliance: Want to rebuild the economy and create more jobs?
Get rid of government red tape stifling domestic energy recovery
by Pinedale Online!
December 28, 2011
A study commissioned by the Western Energy Alliance states that western independent oil and natural gas producers are able to solve some the United State’s most pressing economic and security challenges, but are hindered by bureaucratic red tape, redundant and burdensome government regulations, and the unending specter of litigation
The report says there is a pressing need to reform the management and regulation of energy development in the West if the United States is serious about increasing its own domestic energy supplies and rebuilding the economy. "As quickly as technological advancement has opened the door to a century’s worth of new oil and natural gas in the West, misguided government action is preventing achievement of the region’s full energy potential."
The report, "Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity" was prepared by EIS Solutions. It says:
"By 2020, the West will produce as much oil and natural gas on a daily basis as the U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Venezuela, Colombia, Algeria, Nigeria, and Russia combined. However, Federal government policies are significantly undermining these projections of growth, investment and expansion. The Blueprint identifies specific actions that must be taken if America is to reap the full benefit of western energy:
• A thorough review and comprehensive reform of the entire federal onshore process, including leasing, project environmental analysis, and permitting
• A moratorium on new and expanded layers of regulation
• Limits to litigation that unreasonably obstruct domestic energy production and economic growth
• Changes to renewable portfolio standards to allow natural gas to compete for electricity generation capacity on the basis of fuel-neutral performance criteria such as cost and emissions profile
• Market-based policies that remove barriers preventing natural gas from fully competing as a transportation fuel"
The report lists these points of concern
Points of Concern:
Western producers are gravely concerned that current and future government policies are significantly undermining these projections of growth, investment and expansion. Because much of western oil and natural gas is located on federal land, redundant and burdensome government regulations and bureaucratic red tape are making western energy production more difficult and expensive compared to other regions.
• The unending specter of litigation aimed at stopping domestic energy development is significantly driving up the cost of development and often preventing access to important energy resources altogether.
• Since almost all western oil and natural gas development requires hydraulic fracturing, proposals to transfer regulatory control from the states to the federal government could delay or prevent expanded production in the West.
• The abundance of American natural gas is good news for consumers and for our nation, but significant reserve additions from across the country have created significant gas-on-gas competition.
Click on this link for the report:
http://westernenergyalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Blueprint-for-Western-Energy-Prosperity.pdf
Click here if the above link no longer works: Western Energy Blueprint (4.95MB, 23-page PDF)
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