Natural Gas is a Domestic Fuel  

Dependency on Foreign Oil

Gasoline has long been a major part of the American car culture.  For a country where life without the automobile is not only inconvenient but unthinkable, rising gas prices affected consumers perceptions about what many Americans considered their right.  Seeing the fuel price directly affected by the handful of foreign countries, American consumers realized the threat that foreign oil dependency posed to their lifestyle.  This realization drastically changed consumers’ consumption habits and views on energy as the price of a gallon of gasoline reached $5 in many parts of the country.  

The United States is the world’s single largest consumer of gasoline. The U.S. market devours approximately 25% of the 80 million barrels per day of global crude consumption, spending more than $700 Billion per year on imported oil.  The state of California alone consumes approximately 11% of the U.S. supply, amounting to 2.3 million barrels of crude per day or 2.9% of global demand.  With no pipelines into California and refineries at capacity, the state of California will experience a fuel deficiency of 6 million vehicles per year within 10 years.

It has been made clear through public policy and in socio-economic forums that the U.S. must reduce its dependence on foreign oil as a transportation fuel. Significant government funding programs have been, and continue to be developed to facilitate a change in market and consumer behavior. 

Natural Gas is a Domestic Fuel

In recent years the importance of imported oil to the US economy and the vulnerability that such dependence brings has increased the focus on alternative sources of energy.  Natural gas provides an economical, environmentally sound, and domestically abundant resource that can support the growing demand for its use as a transportation fuel.  

While 98% of the natural gas used in the US is produced in North America (85% from the US and the rest from Canada), the U.S. and Canada have little ability to produce and sell their natural gas on the international market.  As a result, they are largely isolated from the international market fluctuations and world clearing price for natural gas. This means that domestic pricing of natural gas will be driven by domestic supply and demand and will not be a victim of world pricing fluctuations. 

The United States has a vast supply of natural gas reserves that are reasonably and economically available.   As of 2007, amount of gas held in proven dry reserves was estimated to be 237 Trillion cubic feet.   This amount only quantifies the amount that is proven and confirmed.  The amount that is ultimately recoverable is estimated to be 1400 Trillion cubic feet by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.   These numbers are continually being increased, as further exploration and drilling techniques bring more reserves to light.  

In addition, it is to some extent a sustainable resource.   New technologies have developed methods of recovering the natural gas from renewable sources.  In this process, organic matter is broken down by tiny microorganisms, producing a type of natural gas called biogenic methane.  Many animals and organisms produce this type of gas, but controlled retrieval can be difficult, so much of it is lost to the atmosphere.  A more reliable source of biogenic methane harvesting can be done through landfills, where the gas can be retrieved and routed into the national grid.  

The widespread adoption of natural gas as a fuel can decrease our dependence on foreign oil and give us more control over our fuel prices.