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Sunday, August 25, 2002 Texas natural resources: Oil and natural gas By Charles R.
Matthews
The discovery of oil in large amounts during the latter part of the nineteenth century allowed us to use crude oil and its products to greatly escalate our industrial success. It is self evident that abundant natural resources, which result in reasonable energy prices, are necessary for the continued economic success of our country. Texas has played a major role in providing the country the energy that it needs. We discovered the first commercial well in Nacogdoches, Texas, in 1865. However, the 1901 discovery of the Spindletop, outside of Beaumont, marked the beginning of the oil industry in Texas. For the last 100 years, Texas has led the nation in the production of oil. Our peak production was in 1972, but even today we produce over one million barrels of oil a day. This represents about 20 percent of the country’s production. Natural gas was discovered in the early 1900s. Texas has been and still is the country’s largest producer of natural gas. We produce almost 30 percent of the total U.S. production — about 5.5 trillion cubic feet per year. Texas is both the largest consumer of natural gas and the largest exporter of natural gas. We regularly export about 1.7 trillion cubic feet per year, mostly to the northeast and Midwest. Much of the political debate in Texas over the last hundred years has centered around these abundant natural resources and how we should use those resources for the public good. The oil and gas business has been and continues to be a vital part of the economy of Texas. The oil and gas industry pays billions of dollars of taxes, both at the state and local levels. It also contributes in a huge way to education in the State. Our Texas state lands receive oil and gas royalty payments totaling hundreds of millions of dollars annually. These royalty payments are revenue that goes into the Permanent School fund and the Permanent University fund. Because of the importance of the oil and gas industry to Texas, we must work to preserve this industry in Texas. Both natural gas and oil are currently topping the energy discussions in our country and around the world. The challenge of providing affordable energy and managing the production of our natural resources is becoming increasingly more difficult. The awareness of this challenge inspired President Bush to come forward with a National Energy plan. That plan, simply stated, is an effort to look at all aspects of our country’s energy needs, evaluate the available natural resources, and decide what should be done to make certain that we continue to have affordable energy. This is a continuation of energy discussions we have been having for a very long time. In my opinion, it is imperative for the president to have the support of Congress in this effort for our country to continue its traditional economic success. We must realize how important the Texas natural resources of oil and natural gas are to the state and the country. I will continue working on policies that properly manage and protect Texas natural resources. This industry has
been a vital part of Texas and the country for more than 100 years,
and with proper management, it will continue to be for many years
to come. About Charles Matthews: Railroad Commissioner Charles Matthews was elected to the Commission in 1994 and is the current senior member. In November of 2000, he won re-election to a second term. This year, he was appointed to serve on the Technical Pipeline Safety Standards Committee He is currently leading the efforts and discussion to establish a working relationship with Mexico’s Energy Regulatory Commission to identify energy regulatory barriers and opportunities available on both sides of the border.
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Natural
resources always have played a very important role in U.S. history.
Much of the success this country has had in its 200 plus years
has come about because of our abundant natural resources. In our
earliest years we developed our first industrial mills in the
Northeast that were powered by fast running water. This abundant
source of energy allowed our manufacturing facilities to compete
in overseas markets. With the discovery of high grade coal, our
country continued on its successful path of developing our manufacturing
facilities.|
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E.W. Scripps Publications