Illinois abounds in energy resources. Unfortunately, we have a political class that seems to not want to take advantage of them. In fact, the New Green Deal in Washington is met with open arms in Springfield.
Oil and Natural Gas
Throughout Illinois, especially in the southern half of the state, there are abundant oil and natural gas resources. For years, the fracking boom throughout America passed up Illinois because our politicians couldn’t even put together the required regulations to tap into Illinois oil and gas resources.
Once those regulations were put into law, Illinois once again fell behind as our regulations were far more onerous than those in states like Indiana. Oil and gas capital went to states where permitting was more reasonable, and owners of these resources in Illinois were not able to be part of the nationwide energy boom.
Coal
For decades, engineers have made the use of coal cleaner and more efficient than ever. In fact, it seems that the success of these engineers has caused the redoubling of efforts in DC to kill the American coal industry, including the industry in Illinois.
We all care about the environment, but we know that it is possible to maintain a coal market in America while still protecting our natural resources. With a fraction of the dollars spent on global warming research, America could make even further advancements in the development of clean coal technology.
Nuclear
Illinois gets nearly half their electricity from nuclear power. Illinois produces 10% of America’s nuclear power. Yet many in Springfield would like to go the way of Germany and kill the nuclear power industry. We need to maintain our nuclear power production capability.