Louisiana bill would redefine gas as ‘green' amid Trump energy push

Independent

4 hours ago

A Louisiana bill passed by the state legislature would allow natural gas to be redefined as 'green energy' and instruct utility companies to use energy produced using hydrocarbons, the main component of fossil fuels.
Known as HB692, the bill says that the criteria for what is deemed 'green energy' would include energy generated by nuclear reactors, natural gas, and by biomass and renewable energy or hydrocarbons 'when combusted for the purpose of electricity generation meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under the authority of the Clean Air Act.'
'Green energy as defined in this Subsection shall be applicable to all state programs that fund 'green energy' or 'clean energy' initiatives,' it said.
Gov. Jeff Landry is expected to sign it into law later this month. It was sponsored by Rep. Jacob Landry, a fellow Republican.
But, critics of the plan say that there's nothing green about fossil fuel production.
'There's nothing clean or green about continued extraction of carbon from underground, whatever the flavor is,' James Hiatt, a former oil and gas worker from Calcasieu Parish and founder of For a Better Bayou, told The Lens. 'For them to categorize [hydrocarbons] as green is just a blatant lie by lobbyists for the oil and gas industry.'
The governor asserted in an executive order last year that natural gas in Louisiana is 'affordable, clean, and reliable.'
On Wednesday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright – and former Liberty Energy CEO – said Louisiana would "become a larger exporter of liquefied natural gas than any nation on Earth,' according to NOLA.com.
Notably, a $28 million liquified natural gas export project broke ground in the Bayou State earlier this month, according to Offshore Energy.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel energy source that is largely made up of methane, in addition to carbon dioxide and water vapor. Methane is a hydrocarbon and one of the worst greenhouse gases. It is second only to carbon dioxide in its contribution to climate change, and scientists say methane emissions have been rising faster than ever. Greenhouse gases trapped in Earth's atmosphere are responsible for rising global temperatures, and last year was the warmest on record.
But, climate change has been a threat that the Trump administration has largely denied in the name of 'American energy dominance.' In a statement, Administrator Lee Zeldin – who had said climate change was a real and urgent issue, following the LA wildfires - has slammed it as 'narrow-minded climate change zealotry.' Landry, like the president, has previously called climate change a 'hoax.'
The Environmental Protection Agency acted to roll back regulations for power plants, proposing to repeal all greenhouse gas emissions standards for the power sector under the Clean Air Act and the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards that directly result in coal-fired power plants having to shut down.
That's a move environmental advocates have excoriated.
'The Trump EPA's proposed repeal of these life-saving clean air protections is dangerous to the health, safety and well-being of all Americans,' Vickie Patton, the general counsel of the Environmental Defense Fund, said in a statement shared with The Independent. '...Power plants are already among the largest sources of mercury, toxic and climate-destabilizing pollution in the nation, and these proposals would allow them to pour more of that pollution into our air. These pollutants are associated with deaths, serious illnesses and hospitalizations, and increased medical costs.'
'The key rationale Zeldin is using to justify the dismantling of our nation's protections from power plant pollution is absolutely illogical and indefensible. It's a purely political play that goes against decades of science and policy review, former EPA administrator Gina McCarthy said. '...By giving a green light to more pollution, his legacy will forever be someone who does the bidding of the fossil fuel industry at the expense of our health.'
Recently, Zeldin has also claimed that ramping up domestic energy production would be better for the environment. But, Louisianans near fossil fuel and petrochemical operations have felt the negative health consequences of exposure to power and chemical plant pollution. Many live in an area that has come to be known as 'cancer alley.' These harms are disproportionately borne by the area's Black residents, according to a report from the international non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch.
'We're dying from inhaling the industries' pollution,' Sharon Lavigne, a 71-year-old Saint James Parish resident, told the group in 2023. 'I feel like it's a death sentence. Like we are getting cremated, but not getting burnt.'