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Editor, News-Register:
Ohio has a long, proud history of producing American oil and natural gas. The recent opinion column, "Strengthen Our Economy" (Sept. 28), doubts the benefits of energy production to the region despite clear evidence to the contrary.
The article claims that natural gas production has "deteriorated" in Appalachia since 2008, but U.S. Energy Information Administration data tells a different story.
Way back in January 2008, the Appalachian region produced just under 1.5 million cubic feet per day (cf/d). But last month, it produced more than 35.8 million cf/d. This comes after a decade and a half of development across the region, yielding significant economic benefits to Ohio and our neighbors.
In fact, a recent study showed the natural gas and oil industry supports jobs for over 352,000 Ohioans, equivalent to 1 in 20 Buckeye State jobs. That includes direct employees, supply chain workers and other jobs throughout the economy benefiting from the spending of the first two groups.
In Ohio alone, the economic impact of natural gas and oil totaled $55 billion in 2021.
This mirrors the role natural gas and oil play nationally - supporting almost 11 million jobs and contributing nearly $2 trillion to the U.S. economy.
The opinion column in question asked policymakers to "strengthen our economy." If they follow the data, they'll know the path to prosperity runs through continued development of oil and natural gas.
Chris Zeigler
Executive Director
American Petroleum Institute Ohio