National Energy Expert Offers Pivotal Natural Gas Synopsis
Former Energy Department executive highlights nexus of politics and natural gas development in 2012
WASHINGTON – Frank M. Stewart, former president and chief operating officer of the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE), was featured recently in The Huffington Post, where he argues that, for the sake of our energy future, the ongoing, nationwide debate over hydraulic fracturing – the natural gas drilling process – must be civil and in America's best interest.
As President Obama asserted during his State of the Union address, “We have a supply of natural gas that can last America nearly 100 years…And my administration will take every possible action to safely develop this energy.” And with the president stating that natural gas “will support more than 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade”, Stewart’s analysis of natural gas development is particularly salient.
In his column, “Natural Gas’ Role in 2012 Election Cycle”, Stewart writes:
“…Natural gas exploration is already providing very substantial incomes for thousands and thousands of American families and creating thousands of new businesses.”And “[r]ecent discoveries…provide further evidence of the innumerable opportunities for job seekers, small businesses and cash-strapped state governments.”
Stewart continues, “…The U.S. natural gas industry supports 2.8 million jobs and infuses the economy with nearly $400 billion each year. Through safe and responsible expansion of natural gas exploration these numbers will continue to grow… An open discussion [about hydraulic fracturing] is both desirable and fully warranted. However, those who would make fallacious claims, propagate fear, or advocate, with no viable scientific justification a complete ban on hydraulic fracturing are doing a grave disservice to the nation.”
To read the rest of Stewart’s Huffington Post column, please click here.
To speak with Stewart, or for more information, please contact Paula Jackson at (202) 371-9530 or pjackson@aabe.org
Frank M. Stewart is past president and chief operating officer of the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE) and is a member of the EPA’s National Advisory Council on Environmental Policies and Technologies (NACEPT). He worked for the U.S. Department of Energy for more than 25 years.
Contact:
Paula Jackson
202-371-9530 Phone
202-371-9218 Fax
pjackson@aabe.org