Apr 5, 2020 5 min read

In Washington County, we produce natural gas and coal. We produce a lot of it, and we produce it very efficiently. As a result, in Southwest Pennsylvania we have a reliable and inexpensive supply of electricity. Because we have reliable and inexpensive power, we have a strong economy and a history of job growth. Nothing works without electricity, not even your gas furnace.

What if this were not so? What if we didn’t have our reliable and affordable supply of electricity and our vibrant gas industry? Our venerable coal industry? This past week we had an opportunity to briefly see what that might be like.

As a result of coronavirus directives, many Washington County residents are experiencing the bitter taste of what high unemployment is like, hopefully only short term. A recent wind storm blew through the area with gusts up to 50 mph. The inevitable result was the loss of power in many areas, including mine. This afforded some time at home in the dark to contemplate what it would be like if some Democrats currently on the national stage ever succeeded in doing what they say they will do and shut down the gas and coal industry. The simulation was perfect because there was no electricity for heat and light because there would be no gas or coal to generate it, and there was no work because without the energy industry the economy of this area would turn to dust.

The natural gas industry in Pennsylvania is roughly 25% of the nation’s total production. More than one third of the power production in this area is generated by natural gas and one quarter by coal.

The natural gas industry in Pennsylvania supports nearly 350,000 well-paying jobs and contributes more than $45 billion to the economy of the state. As the gas industry grows, so do other opportunities dependent on the gas industry. The coal industry supports thousands of active miners and many more thousand pensioners.

The Royal Dutch Shell Cracker Plant, a major user of natural gas, represents a multibillion-dollar investment and hundreds of jobs in our area with other similar plants to follow. With these facilities come their own chain of production and supply companies.

I’m sitting in my dark and cold house thinking how and why anyone would want to shut the gas industry down and turn Washington County into a lifeless ghost town. Joe Biden says that is his plan. On Day One. Plus shutting down the coal mines. Plus the nuclear generating plants. I wonder if he knows that much of the electrical power in this area, which means most of the light and heat, comes from one of those sources.

So why would Joe Biden or anyone else want to do that? The stock answer is to become a carbonless economy, to save the planet. OK, let’s just say we probably have some differences on that issue and stay with the art of the doable. How, exactly, does one replace all of the electric energy generated by gas, coal and nuclear with the so-called renewable resources of wind, solar and hydro in the next several decades?

Right now, 38.4% of the electricity generated in this country comes from natural gas, 23.5% from coal and 19.7% from nuclear. The amount from solar is too small to even discuss (about 1.8%), wind energy generates about 7.3% and hydro generates 6.6%. I saw a statement in a pro-alternative energy article that said, “Solar and wind power use has grown at a rapid rate over the past decade or so, but as of 2018 those sources accounted for less than 10% of all electrical energy used in the U.S.” If it has grown at a “rapid rate” for 10 years, with huge subsidies, presumably being applied to the easiest to fulfill opportunities, how long will it take to begin to challenge the 82% share of fossil fuels and nuclear while engaging more challenging opportunities? Subsidies don’t last forever. Eventually wind and solar will have to compete in the free market without subsidies.

Natural gas is constantly becoming more efficient and cost effective. Coal will always compete. The BTUs delivered by coal are second to none in our nation’s power plants.

I have no doubt that solar energy will find its niches in the market place, as will wind energy. Hydroelectric energy has been a steady generator for decades and generates 6.6% of our electric power. There are, however, only so many places to build hydroelectric plants.

The bottom line for the zero carbon renewable energy folks is that solar and wind are still very expensive, particularly without subsidies, and only work in a few places. They lack scalability and have little surge or storage capacity. Even where they work, they still need fossil fuel or nuclear supplement. The realistic odds of them effectively competing with fossil fuels in the foreseeable future are remote. I say that only because the enabling technology and economics are not even on the horizon. Attacking the industries and employees that have placed our region in the most enviable position in the country is not a solution to anything.

So think about this, fellow residents of Washington County. When you hear Democratic candidates like Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders (and recent hoped-for alternative to Joe Biden, Andrew Cuomo, whose war against natural gas is well known) say they will shut down the gas and coal industry, what will that mean to you? If the gas and coal companies are crippled or go away and all the jobs dependent upon them follow, I think it will be just like sitting around the cold, dark house without a job to go to. Maybe that experience was just a foretaste of what will happen if we do not vote wisely. Biden, Sanders and Cuomo don’t qualify as wisely for the people of Washington County.

Dave Ball is vice chairman of the Republican Party of Washington County and a Peters Township councilman.