OPINION: The New Case for Natural Gas

The need to dramatically reduce carbon dioxide emissions while enhancing energy security and providing economical energy services is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today. Achieving these goals will require a transformation of the global energy economy and must be based on a robust combination of resources and technologies.

Natural gas has recently emerged as a vital but neglected complement to the paragons of low-carbon energy: renewable energy and energy efficiency. Recent developments in technology, from gas wells to home appliances, suggest a need to fundamentally reevaluate the role of natural gas in the energy system. Together with renewable energy and energy efficiency, natural gas should be a cornerstone of strategies to advance energy security and reduce the threat of climate change – a conclusion that has recently been supported by U.S. environmental leaders, including Robert Kennedy, Jr., John Podesta, Carl Pope, and Tim Wirth.

…Natural gas is the only fossil fuel that can, with existing technology, immediately contribute to reducing oil dependence and solving the climate problem by reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Expanded use of natural gas could rapidly substitute for the older coal-fired power plants that are not targets for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). And natural gas-based electricity can provide the reliable power supplies that are needed to complement intermittent energy sources such as wind and solar power.

WorldWatch