Natural Gas

Close-up of pipe labeled with yellow and black Natural Gas sticker.

Louisiana Planning Massive ‘Mystery’ Data Center

The center would be powered by a new, 1,500-megawatt natural gas plant, which critics say will drive up emissions and contribute negatively to the region’s air quality.

November 19, 2024 - Floodlight

Distant view of brown oil pump jack in a flat desert with cloudy blue sky.

High Ozone Levels Threaten New Mexico Oil Town

The small community of Loving, New Mexico has higher ozone levels than dense cities like Los Angeles.

August 22, 2024 - KUNM

Close-up of natural gas stove burner with blue flames.

Berkeley Voters to Decide on Building Gas Tax

The city could tax large buildings that use gas in lieu of enacting a law that would have banned gas-powered buildings altogether.

June 12, 2024 - Smart Cities Dive

Close-up of electric stove range with front burners red-hot.

California Cities Suspend Natural Gas Bans Following Court Ruling

A Ninth Circuit court ruling forced Berkeley to reverse its ban on natural gas in new buildings, prompting other cities to suspend their own efforts to promote all-electric buildings.

May 28, 2024 - East Bay Times

Power lines with dense icicles hanging from them against blue sky.

Texas Grid Holds Up to Freezing Temperatures

Efforts made to prepare the state’s infrastructure for winter storms after 2021’s disastrous freeze are paying off.

January 18, 2024 - The New York Times

Close-up of lit burner on natural gas stove with blue flame and small yellow flame shooting up.

Berkeley Natural Gas Ban Remains Reversed

A court declined to revisit its decision to invalidate a city ban on natural gas hookups.

January 4, 2024 - Smart Cities Dive

Close-up of multiple lines of blue natural gas flames inside a boiler.

Massachusetts Moves Toward Decarbonization

The state developed a framework for planning to phase out natural gas, denying industry calls to allow hydrogen and renewable natural gas.

December 12, 2023 - Inside Climate News

Electricity towers against sunset sky with green trees in background.

Energy Reliability on the Ballot in Texas

Texans will decide on November 7 whether to subsidize electricity generation to strengthen the power grid to prevent blackouts, but only with the construction of new natural gas power plants.

November 8, 2023 - The Washington Post

View of natural gas power plant with two tall smokestacks on Northern California coast

Making Natural Gas Power Plants Cleaner

Carbon capture and storage has long been associated with coal-burning power plants. Calpine Corp. hopes to apply the controversial technology to existing natural gas power plants, beginning with a pilot project to start this month in the Bay Area.

August 17, 2023 - The Sacramento Bee

Natural gas stove with blue flame

Berkeley’s First-in-Nation Natural Gas Ban Overthrown by Court Ruling

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Berkeley does not have the power to mandate electric hookups in new development because a federal rule preempts the local regulation.

April 18, 2023 - Bloomberg Law

Close-up of lit burner on gas stove with blue flames

Why the Gas Stove Debate Misses the Point

Banning gas-powered appliances is one part of a broader toolkit of changes in building codes that could vastly improve efficiency.

January 18, 2023 - Route Fifty

Houses on green hillside in Marin County, California

Marin County Mandates Building Electrification

Starting January 1, all new buildings in the county must be electric-powered, while multifamily apartment buildings will be required to provide electric car chargers.

November 23, 2022 - Globe St.

Four natural gas storage tanks with European Union flag logos

Rationing Energy

American motorists may complain about the 'pain at the pump,' but there is no shortage of gasoline, unlike the availability of natural gas in Europe.

August 7, 2022 - E&E News

Liquid natural gas tanker in Klaipeda, Lithuania

Europe's New Energy Infrastructure Begins to Emerge

When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin hoped to quickly redraw national boundary lines in Eastern Europe. The region's energy infrastructure, particularly pipelines carrying natural gas, may change sooner.

May 24, 2022 - POLITICO Europe

Gazprom building in St. Petersburg, Russia

Energy War Comes to the European Union

When President Putin ordered Gazprom to turn off the valve on pipelines carrying Russian gas to Poland and Bulgaria, he effectively expanded the Russia-Ukraine war to the European Union, threatening their economic well-being and way of life.

May 3, 2022 - The New York Times

Natural Gas

Withholding Energy as a Weapon

As Russia intensifies its offensive in Ukraine, energy security has become a matter of urgency for Poland and Bulgaria after Russia announced they will suspend the flow of natural gas through its pipelines to these two NATO and EU members.

April 27, 2022 - The New York Times

Drilling rig at a gas field in the North of Western Siberia

Hooked on Russian Gas

The EU relies on Russia for 45% of its natural gas imports and 27% of its crude oil imports. Germany's dependency is a major reason why it won't ban these imports despite Russia's war in Ukraine. Two natural gas pipelines explain part of the problem.

April 21, 2022 - The New York Times

Oil extraction pumps in winter landscape in Russia

European Union Takes Initial Step to Ban Russian Energy Imports

After a second day of talks in Brussels, ambassadors to the European Union agreed to ban coal imports from Russia as evidence of widescale atrocities committed by Russian troops in Ukraine surfaced after their withdrawal from the outskirts of Kyiv.

April 11, 2022 - The New York Times

Energy Use

U.S. to Help European Union Achieve Energy Security

President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in Brussels the formation of a joint task force to help the European Union reduce dependence on Russian energy in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

April 3, 2022 - Euractiv

Oil Drills

Sanctioning Russian Energy Exports

European leaders chose not to join the U.S. in an embargo of Russian energy products largely because of dependence on natural gas. Similarly, the world needs the 11% of crude oil that Russia exports. What can the U.S. do to lessen this dependence?

March 24, 2022 - Rhodium Group

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