CONGRESSIONAL SPOTLIGHT/
Rep. Garret Graves, LA-06
Rep. Garret Graves has served Louisiana in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015. He serves on the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, as well as the House Natural Resources Committee.
Your district and surrounding areas are home to many energy workers who supply the entire country with the oil and gas needed for modern life. What are concerns this workforce has been sharing with you and your colleagues in Washington, DC? I’m very proud to represent our energy workers. These are the folks that are powering America’s economy. Many of these workers have the same concerns as every other American – they’re concerned about our mounting debt, rising inflation and the record high gas prices that hurt their paychecks. The most frequent frustration we hear is that America is putting additional American energy off limits while asking countries like Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran and others to produce more oil. It is hard to hear that — especially from their own president. Louisiana is a leading energy producer that powers the nation. We fulfill a large share of America’s energy demand, and we do so in a way that is cleaner and more efficient than any other nation. Energy workers are baffled that this Administration would rather shift the blame and beg the foreign OPEC alliance rather than support good-paying jobs or produce cleaner energy right here at home.
As Ranking Member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, what are the major goals of this committee? Over the last 15 years, the United States has led the world in reducing emissions – reducing more than the next seven countries combined. But not only did we reduce emissions during that time, we lowered energy costs for Americans. Cheaper energy and reduced emissions did not happen because of more federal regulations, mandates, and taxes – they came through American resources and innovation embraced by the free market. That should be the model going forward, and this is what I’ve advocated for as Ranking Member of the House Select Climate Committee.
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Well Servicing Magazine/March 2022
Policies that create American jobs, enhance American competitiveness, and provide maximum national security and energy security while protecting our environment. We can either follow the successful strategies that have worked, or we can continue to go down the wrong road of mandates and attempting to force consumer markets — resulting in higher emissions, constrained energy supplies and higher prices for American families.
Energy Workforce companies are actively involved in the ‘energy transition,’ which you have previously alluded to as an opportunity for the oil and gas industry in Louisiana and the U.S. What is the public misunderstanding about the role of oil and gas in reducing carbon emissions? Where do you see Louisiana being a leader in the energy transition? Reducing emissions shouldn’t mean reducing energy choices. America’s strategy should be based on our strengths and our resources. Some have focused on demonizing fossil fuels when it is the emissions that we should be targeting. Eliminating America’s supply of fossil fuels does not dampen global demand, it only ensures that demand will be met with higher emitting sources from OPEC and Russia. If we truly want to reduce global emissions, eliminating U.S. fossil fuels is counterproductive. U.S. energy resources are the most reliable, efficient and abundant, and play an important role in the United States economy, and to promoting energy security globally. Innovation that allows us to utilize our American resources with lower emissions should be a focus of policymakers. It has been noted that fossil fuels will continue to play a significant role in providing energy to the world. In fact, according to the Energy Information Administration, overall energy demand is expected to increase and global natural gas demand is expected to increase 31-58% by 2050. That demand should be met with U.S. resources that often have the lowest lifecycle carbon emissions in the world and investment in U.S. technologies to further reduce emissions. Louisiana has some of the best geology and geography for carbon sequestration to complement the growing global demand for conventional fuels and opportunities
