Nat Gas Now: Driving Change
- Nat Gas Now: Driving Change
- Wednesday, Mar 30
As global instability drives up prices at the pump, families and businesses across the nation are feeling the pinch, and the United States is once again presented with the serious issue of our nation's energy security.
President Obama was right in his remarks today to focus on the potential of natural gas to advance U.S. energy security, and the idea has strong appeal across the political spectrum today. In this installment of Nat Gas Now, we explore the constructive role that natural gas can play as a clean, affordable and American transportation fuel.
With generations of natural gas supply found right here in North America, our nation has the opportunity to dramatically reduce our dependence on foreign energy through greater use of natural gas vehicles. What's more, natural gas is a cleaner choice that can also substantially reduce emissions.
Here are just some of the ways that natural gas can drive change as Americans across the country implement smarter transportation choices:
- Replacing 3.5 million heavy-duty vehicles with natural gas vehicles by 2035 would save more than 1.2 million barrels of imported oil per DAY.
- Converting just one trash truck to run on compressed natural gas is the emissions-reduction equivalent of removing 325 cars from the road.
- Businesses and cities are finding that natural gas vehicles pay for themselves in fuel savings. Many fleets report 15 percent to 28 percent savings compared with the costs of diesel fleets.
- Recently, a new natural gas filling station opened in Oklahoma City (andmore are springing up across the country). The price per gallon equivalent of natural gas tops off at $1.39. What a difference compared with gasoline prices!
Communities and businesses across the country are beginning to understand the many benefits natural gas offers, and are growing their fleets of natural gas vehicles. On Friday, President Obama will be visiting UPS, a company that has put more than 1,100 compressed natural gas trucks to use, moving thousands of packages each day with a cleaner, American fuel. We hope more companies, cities and government agencies can follow this positive example.
Natural gas is clean, abundant-and ours. It's time we put it to greater use to advance U.S. energy security and drive change. It's one more reason to join our call for Nat Gas Now.
