Energy Security
Energy security is paramount to America’s economic health and to our national security. If the U.S. is to become more energy independent and more energy secure, we must aggressively develop our domestic resources, including oil, gas nuclear, and coal. However, we must also invest heavily in new technologies, alternative fuels, and in efficiency measures at the same time.
A Fair Share for Louisiana
Louisiana is a recognized leader in domestic oil and gas production. The Gulf Coast produces more than a quarter of the Nation’s domestic oil and natural gas. 76% of America’s offshore energy production takes place directly off of Louisiana’s coast. For more than 50 years, oil companies produced that oil and gas and sent billions of dollars in royalties to the Federal government – but none to Louisiana, even though our coastal marshlands bore the brunt of the impacts. Thanks to Senator Landrieu’s leadership, Louisiana now receives a fair share of the revenues derived from these precious mineral resources. In 2006 Senator Landrieu worked with then-Energy Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., to pass the Domenici-Landrieu Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act.
For the first time, this law secured a fair share of offshore oil and gas revenues for Louisiana. This independent revenue stream is expected to provide Louisiana billions of additional dollars in coming decades for flood protection and coastal restoration projects. It has brought more than $6 million into Louisiana for 2009 alone. It also provides significant funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which funds the creation of parks and outdoor recreation areas across the country.
The Domenici-Landrieu Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act will serve as a template for similar measures around the country – and that will enhance U.S. energy security. Senator Landrieu believes that a system that shares the benefits of offshore drilling with the coastal states will foster more domestic energy production while helping to restore coastal areas around the country.
Natural Gas
In 2009, Senator Landrieu started the Senate Natural Gas Caucus with Senator Saxby Chambliss, R-GA. This bipartisan group of Senators works to better understand the role of natural gas in producing clean, affordable and secure American energy.
Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel and is a plentiful resource in the United States. In Louisiana, a massive new supply of natural gas has been discovered recently -- the Haynesville Shale. Industry experts estimate that it holds between 7.5 trillion and 20 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Senator Landrieu recognizes that an increase in natural gas production will benefit the economy. The combined economic impact of natural gas development, exploration, production, and usage to the U.S. economy in 2008 was $385.5 billion. Furthermore, the natural gas industry directly employs 1.3 million people. That’s more than the coal, wind, solar, or nuclear industries. Senator Landrieu knows that when we produce oil and natural gas in America, we produce jobs in America.