In Louisiana, natural gas—a planet-heating fossil fuel—is now, by law, considered “green energy” that can compete with solar and wind projects for clean energy funding. The law, signed by Republican Governor Jeff Landry last month, comes on the heels of similar bills passed in Ohio, Tennessee, and Indiana. What the bills have in common—besides an “updated definition” of a fossil fuel as a clean energy source—is language seemingly plucked straight from a right-wing think tank backed by oil and gas billionaire and activist Charles Koch.
Louisiana’s law was based on a template created by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative organization that brings legislators and corporate lobbyists together to draft bills “dedicated to the principles of limited government, free markets and federalism.” The law maintains that Louisiana, in order to minimize its reliance on “foreign adversary nations” for energy, must ensure that natural gas and nuclear power are eligible for “all state programs that fund ‘green energy’ or ‘clean energy’ initiatives.”
It's incredible the kind of shit you can apparently spin as long as you're Republican and cite "protection from foreign adversaries."
“Louisiana is a classic example of a captured state,” Peterson said. “Their state economy is just so dependent on fossil fuels and petrochemicals.” (The amount of money the fossil fuel industry brings to Louisiana’s people, though, has been on the decline since the turn of the century.)
The state accounts for about 10 percent of the country’s natural gas production and holds about 6 percent of U.S. natural gas reserves. Natural gas is already used to generate about three-quarters of the state’s electricity, and building out more pipeline projects to carry liquefied natural gas, or LNG, won’t necessarily make electricity bills cheaper for residents, Peterson said.
“Building LNG infrastructure is not going to lower anyone’s energy prices in the short term,” since it takes many years to build a pipeline, Peterson said. “And there’s a lot of research that shows that overreliance on gas leaves power grids vulnerable to extreme weather, which Louisiana has a lot of.”
Landry plans to make the giant LNG plant he is building a part of his Huey Long legacy. Most of the local support he gained for this plant is due to his claims of job creation for locals.
It's important to keep in mind, that last year, Landry also changed the existing state rules so that industrial corporations no longer have to actually provide jobs in order to receive corporate welfare.
•Tax breaks for LNG facilities will cost Louisiana parishes $21 billion: report
•Louisiana’s LNG terminals cost taxpayers $7 million for every person they employ
•Landry removes job requirements, trumps local authority for industrial tax breaks
Just in time for the Federal government (and fellow Louisiana Republican Mike Johnson) to add this bullshit work requirements for Mediciad recipients.
TLDR: Corporations in Louisiana get hand outs for doing jack shit. Landry's legacy LNG plant has no incentive to actually create jobs to receive those handouts, and any jobs they do create are actually projected to cost the tax payers more money.
Meanwhile residents in the second most Medicaid dependent state in the country are being told they are lazy leeches, and if they want healthcare they will have to earn it by working for it. Yet there are no jobs...
Why are the states that are most vulnerable to climate change also the ones also rushing to wipe themselves out? It makes no sense to me, especially post-Katrina. You know what's going to happen, dog.
For short term profit, of course