US states redefine gas as green energy
Louisiana is the latest US state to redefine natural gas as green energy under a new law - even though it's a fossil fuel that emits planet-warming greenhouse gases.
Three other states led by Republicans— Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee— have passed similar legislation.
In some Democratic-led states, there have been efforts to phase out natural gas. Cities in New York and California have moved to ban natural gas hook-ups in new buildings, though some of these policies have been successfully challenged in court.
President Donald Trump has signed a spate of executive orders promoting oil, gas and coal, which all warm the planet when burned to produce electricity.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, a major booster of the state's petrochemical industry, says the new law "sets the tone for the future" and will help the state "pursue energy independence and dominance."
Environmental groups say these new laws are part of a broader push by petrochemical industry-backed groups to rebrand fossil fuel as climate friendly and head off efforts to shift electric grids to renewables, such as solar and wind. It's "pure Orwellian greenwashing," said Tim Donaghy, research director of Greenpeace USA.
Globally, the term green energy is used to refer to energy derived from natural sources that do not pollute — solar, wind, hydropower and geothermal energy. Louisiana's law could enable funds slated for state clean energy initiatives to be used to support natural gas.
Natural gas has been the top source of electricity generation in the United States for about a decade, since surpassing coal.
Apart from coal, everything else is better than gas for the planet, said Rob Jackson, a Stanford University climate scientist. Building new gas plants locks in fossil fuel emissions for decades, he added.
The law's author, Republican Jacob Landry, runs an oil and gas industry consulting firm.
"I don't think it's anything crippling to wind or solar, but you got to realise the wind don't blow all the time and the sun don't shine every day," Landry said. The legislation "is saying we need to prioritise what keeps the grid energised," he added.
According to Dave Anderson, policy and communications manager for the Energy and Policy Institute, these laws are part of a long-running disinformation campaign by the gas industry to cast their product as clean to protect their businesses and prevent a shift to renewable energy sources that will address the climate crisis.
"The goal is to elbow out competition from renewables from wind and solar, and in some cases preempt localities' ability to choose to pursue 100 per cent truly clean energy," Anderson said.
The European Union has previously designated natural gas and nuclear as sustainable, a move that Greenpeace and the Austrian government are suing over.
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