Earl Baker: The Power to Prosper is Under our Feet
This month, Earl Baker, a former Pennsylvania state senator, and former member of the Chester County Board of Commissioners, sat down with the GAIN Coalition for a discussion on energy issues relating to his home state. As the chairman of the Labor and Industry Committee during his time in the state legislature, Baker was often at the forefront of energy issues. Reliable and efficient energy is vital for labor and industry to thrive, and Pennsylvania is situated well to meet that challenge.
The Keystone State is second only to Texas in terms of natural gas resources. “If you put Texas and Pennsylvania together,” Baker says, “we are second only to Saudi Arabia.” It is important to keep this in mind when examining the country’s energy situation. The exploration and development of the Marcellus Shale, for example, has helped lower the carbon footprint of Pennsylvania as the state transitioned away from coal use. “The power to prosper is under our feet,” Baker notes, but we must utilize it to the best of our ability to continue lowering our carbon emissions.
While natural gas is an important tool for our domestic economy, it is also a boon to our allies across the pond. Given the globe’s decoupling from Russian energy after the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, exporting our abundant natural gas resources to Europe is paramount for helping keep their energy secure. As Earl Baker says, “the ability to build upon” our energy resources “will allow us to play a stronger role in the world.” Pennsylvanian natural gas is leading the way both domestically and abroad.
Watch the full video with Earl Baker here: Grow America’s Infrastructure Now