Natural Gas
Since the beginning of the fracking boom, economic data show that natural gas development has failed to generate prosperity—or even stave off economic decline—in the region’s largest gas-producing counties.
Robust, lasting job and population growth will require transitioning away from gas-based models of economic development.
Photo: Ted Auch, FracTracker Alliance, 2022.
“Between 2008 and 2019, the economic output of the region’s largest gas-producing counties grew at triple the national average. Yet, the region’s share of jobs, population, and income all declined.”
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Trump wants to order an economic impact study for fracking. He won’t like the results.
Tim Puko of the Wall Street Journal recently reported that President Trump is weighing an executive order to study the economic impacts of fracking. The order, if issued less than a week before election day, will be a transparent attempt to contrast the president’s...
New Rule Allows Explosive Liquefied Natural Gas on Rail Lines Near You
October 22, 1944 was an ordinary Friday in Cleveland until 2:40 in the afternoon. That’s when liquefied natural gas (LNG) that had quietly seeped from a storage tank into the city’s sewer lines exploded with staggering force. The blast sent steel manhole covers...
West Virginia’s Oil & Gas Industry Pushing for Millions in Property Tax Cuts
While West Virginians are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and trying to figure out if their kids can attend school, the oil and gas industry is working with the West Virginia State Tax Department to cut its property taxes by as much as $62 million per year. Last...
The Fracking Boom in Appalachia: Big GDP Growth, Small Amount of Jobs and Local Income
"If our economy seems to be growing but that growth is not sustainable because we are destroying the environment and using up scarce natural resources, our statistics should warn us. But because GDP didn't include resource depletion and environmental degradation, we...
Pennsylvania Families Pay More for Natural Gas Than Most Americans
A decade-long fracking boom in the Keystone State, but local families pay more for electricity and more to heat their homes with gas than the national average.
Lies, damned lies, and economic impact studies
Why the economic impacts of an Appalachian petrochemical buildout won't meet expectations A 2017 economic impact study from the American Chemistry Council paints a glowing picture of jobs growth and economic development accompanying a buildout of petrochemical...
Public Opinion is Moving Against Natural Gas and Fracking
Contrary to unsupported assertions from industry boosters, public opinion is trending strongly against the gas industry.