1. Natural gas plays an essential role in the nation’s
transition to a clean-energy future. Twice as clean as
coal and vastly underutilized today, natural gas is
found in vast abundance throughout our nation. As a
result, it presents the only option of adequate scale
to make meaningful improvements over the next 10
years in both reducing our carbon footprint and
clearing the air in communities across our country.
Natural gas also is an essential partner to the
development of renewables, providing clean, reliable
back-up power when the sun sets or wind dies down.
• When used to generate electricity, natural gas emits
half the CO2 emissions of coal, 80% less nitrogen
oxides and virtually no sulfur dioxide, mercury or
particulate matter.
• Natural gas is currently under-utilized for power
generation and could be called into duty very quickly
to provide cleaner energy and have an immediate
pollution-reduction impact.
In Colorado, Governor Bill Ritter
• Natural gas vehicles emit 25% less CO2 than signed into law the Colorado Clean
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vehicles that run on traditional gasoline or diesel. Air-Clean Jobs Act. And, it’s going to
make the kind of real progress we
Cleaner for Power Generation need in communities across this
Natural gas emits just over half of the CO2 per megawatt-hour country. They’re going to retire and
(MWh) of a coal plant and modern natural gas combined cycle retrofit older coal-fired power plants in
turbines emit 60 percent less CO2 per MWh than a typical existing non-attainment areas. It’s going to
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coal plant. bring down NOx emissions by 80%
over the next eight years—and
The emissions of CO2 from coal-fired electricity generating
facilities are the largest single source of greenhouse gas probably sooner. And, it’s going to do
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emissions in the United States. In fact, coal-fired power plants so through a greater embrace of low-
currently account for 80 percent of all the CO2 emissions from the emission energy sources—among
U.S. electric power industry and about 33 percent of all U.S. CO2 them natural gas. And, along the way,
emissions.
4 it’s going to add to the more than
130,000 Colorado jobs already
If we doubled the utilization of the natural gas capacity to 85 supported by natural gas
percent from 42 percent, you could displace about 19% of the
CO2 emissions associated with coal power, or 635.651 million
metric tons of CO2. This amounts to an 8.8 percent reduction of all
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CO2 emissions in the U.S.
1
Emissions of Greenhouse Gases Report, Energy Information Administration (EIA), December 3, 2009.
2
Displacing Coal with Generation from Existing Natural Gas-Fired Power Plants, Congressional Research Service, January 19, 2010.
3
2010 U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report, EIA, April 2010.
4
Annual Energy Review 2008, EIA, June 2009.
5
Displacing Coal with Generation from Existing Natural Gas-Fired Power Plants, Congressional Research Service, January 19, 2010.

2. A Strong Partner for Renewable Energy
Natural gas is a critical foundation for the development of renewable energy projects in the United States. Renewable
energy sources – wind and solar energy – are intermittent, meaning they can only produce power when the wind is
blowing or the sun is shining. For this reason, renewable energy facilities frequently partner with natural gas power
plants to ensure that cleaner electricity is reliably provided during peak demand periods. Through the existing,
extensive pipeline network and the established connections to the electric transmission grid, natural gas is readily
available and accessible to aid the development and viability of renewable energy.
Cleaner for Fleet Vehicles
After the electric power industry, the transportation sector accounts for 30 percent of U.S. CO2 emissions, with more
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than 225 million automobiles on the road. Powering more of our nation’s fleet vehicles, from city buses to heavy-duty
trucks and light-duty vans, with natural gas can be a crucial step in helping reduce oil imports and promote cleaner air
in our communities.
According to the EPA, natural gas is the cleanest alternative transportation fuel commercially available today. It
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produces roughly 25% less CO2 emissions per vehicle mile traveled than gasoline. The fastest way to deliver
immediate improvements to our environment is to focus on the busiest and heaviest vehicles—conversion of
commercial fleets, municipal trash trucks, transit and school buses, delivery vehicles, taxi cabs and shuttles. These
busy vehicles are the largest individual consumers of foreign oil and emitters of pollutants. They also can be
supported by a focused, regional fueling infrastructure.
Conversions to natural gas vehicles are happening across the country. Los Angeles has 2,800 natural gas buses in
operation and Boston, Dallas, Phoenix and Washington, DC also have significant fleets. Major companies including
AT&T, UPS and Ryder are similarly embracing NGVs. How much of an impact can this leadership have? Converting
just one waste truck from diesel to natural gas is the pollution-reduction equivalent of removing as many as 325 cars
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from the road.
Natural Gas in America’s Clean Energy Portfolio
America could realize substantial environmental, economic and national security benefits – including near-term
reductions in carbon emissions – by using natural gas more effectively in four key ways:
• Increasing the utilization of existing natural gas power plants;
• Expanding the conversion of coal-fired generating facilities to natural gas;
• Using natural gas as a reliable complement to other alternative energy sources; and
• Increasing the use of natural gas as a vehicle fuel.
6
The Impact of a Federal Renewable Portfolio Standard, Wood Mackenzie, February 2007.
7
Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center, U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, last accessed May 28, 2010.
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The Case for Natural Gas The Most Abundant, Clean And Cost-Efficient American Fuel, An Issue Brief, NGVAmerica, February 23, 2009.