Agriculture Coalition Calls on Congress to Increase U.S. Natural Gas
Supply Now (5-18-05)
The Agriculture
Energy Alliance, of which the National Corn Growers Association
(NCGA) along with 59 other farm groups and agribusinesses is a member,
calls on Congress to enact comprehensive energy legislation that
integrates the use and development of domestic natural gas and stabilizes
natural gas prices.
“Most Americans
don’t realize just how much natural gas is used in production
of their food, clothing and now their fuel,” says Leon Corzine,
National Corn Growers Association president. “Specifically,
corn farmers are affected by high natural gas prices because it
is the major component of fertilizers, for the drying of the corn
and irrigation of the crops. That is why the comprehensive energy
bill that gets our country on the path to stabilizing our energy
prices is so critically important to farmers.”
“Congress must
support new legislation to increase the supply of natural gas, lower
its price, and provide relief to farmers and other producers in
our economy,” says Bob Stallman, president of the American
Farm Bureau Federation. “We must diversify our fuel supply,
drill in new areas, and allow permits for new port terminals to
import liquefied natural gas. Or else we must agree to watch our
farm and fertilizer manufacturing sectors continue to erode.”
Since the 1980s, natural
gas has become “the fuel of choice” to meet environmental
goals of every class of user. U.S. demand for natural gas is up
40 percent since 1986 and accounts for 25 percent of U.S. energy
use. By 2025, U.S. natural gas demand is projected to grow another
40 percent. Production has risen less than 1 percent annually since
1998, and the price has tripled compared to the average of the past
decade.
“The United States
has already achieved a 50 percent improvement in energy efficiency.
We can’t just conserve our way out of this crisis,”
says Jean-Mari Peltier, president of the National Council of Farmer
Cooperatives. “We can’t just increase domestic production
from existing fields enough to meet demand.
We can’t
wait decades for new technologies. Our agriculture and manufacturing
sectors need practical policies to increase supply now. Natural
gas alone cannot carry the load. America needs to use all its available
energy resources to meet economic and environmental goals.”
High natural
gas prices and low-cost imports have forced 20 U.S. fertilizer plants
to close in recent years, making U.S. farmers increasingly import
dependent. But increasing import dependence has not lowered fertilizer
prices. Last year, nitrogen fertilizer prices in the United States
reached historic highs – up 80 percent since 1999 –
and supply failed to meet demand.