NRDC recently commissioned an analysis from economists at the Applied Economics Clinic at Tufts University to dig into the repeated claim by project proponents that new interstate natural gas pipelines like the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) or Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) will: (1) save consumers money relative to alternative energy sources; and (2) lead to new manufacturing jobs.
Don’t believe the hype.
The owners of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline assert that it will “create thousands of new jobs in manufacturing and other industries.” Owners of the Mountain Valley Pipeline claim that “Increased supply also would provide opportunities for manufacturing expansions.” Elected officials have often latched onto these claims to justify their support for new pipelines.
This new analysis from Tufts economists, however, found that the emperor has no clothes. They conclude: “There is no clear support for the claim that the ACP would lead to additional opportunities for new manufacturing in the region, and this is likely the case for other new natural gas pipelines such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline.”
In addition, NRDC’s own analysis finds that investing the amount of money that the pipelines would cost in clean energy could support more than 9,000 gross direct and indirect jobs in Virginia, North Carolina, and West Virginia over the next 20 years. This is three times more jobs than ACP owners estimate their pipeline will create over the same time frame.
NDRC – Amy Mall – 12.05.2017
Posted by: Nelson Bailey
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