The national discussion on the export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) is raising several important issues with policymakers, and the American Council for Capital Formation (ACCF) recently assembled a roundtable of economic experts to clarify some of them. In publishing a transcript of that discussion, which it did yesterday, ACCF makes a significant contribution to the ongoing debate and future policymaking.

The new energy abundance paradigm offers tremendous economic and environmental benefits to the American people. It can also help the United States advance its global trade and diplomacy aims. As National Security Advisor Tom Donilon recently noted, international trade “make[s] the U.S. stronger at home and better positioned to lead in the regions where it matters most.” International trade in natural gas obviously serves that purpose.

What a difference a decade makes. As the industry gathers this week in Houston for the LNG 17 conference against a backdrop of increasing domestic supplies of natural gas, it’s worth recalling that a very different mood prevailed 10 years ago, when prominent government officials warned of looming price squeezes brought on by shortages of domestically produced natural gas.

We are continuing to make progress in the cleanup in Mayflower, Arkansas. As we have shared with the community, we are committed to the cleanup and will be there until it is completed. I thought you might like to see a couple of videos we produced for the community that reinforce that commitment and highlight an area of focus – protecting native wildlife. We’re working with Wildlife Response Services, LLC to clean, rehabilitate and release wildlife impacted by the spill.