Over the last eight years, natural gas and oil production has been one area which has provided consistent employment and economic growth. The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council released a report this month showing that while total U.S. employment declined by 0.3 percent between 2005 and 2013, natural gas production expanded by 35 percent.
“Jobs grew by 46.1 percent in the oil and gas extraction sector; by 61.0 percent in the drilling oil and gas wells sector; by 100.2 percent in the support sector for oil and gas operations; by 66.1 percent in the oil and gas pipeline and related structures construction sector; and by 67.1 percent in the oil and gas field machinery and equipment manufacturing sector.”
Last year I wrote of how North Dakota's Bakken oil fields helped draw an additional 22,000 residents to the state and fostered the lowest unemployment rate in the nation. Theirs was not the only success story. Tapping into America’s natural resources has boosted businesses and jobs nationwide.
Here are a few condensed statistics showing the growth which occurred between from 2005 to 2012:
Arkansas: Natural gas production expanded by 501.7 percent; added 6,500 new jobs.
Colorado: Natural gas production expanded by 139.1 percent. On the energy front, jobs grew between 42 percent and 153 percent in energy sectors.
Louisiana: Natural gas production expanded by 83.0 percent. Overall employment increased in Louisiana, with jobs growing by 40.8 percent in the support sector for oil and gas operations.
Oklahoma: Natural gas production expanded by 30.8 percent; added 28,609 jobs.
Pennsylvania: Natural gas production expanded by 1,239.3 percent; jobs grew by 512.3 percent in the support sector for oil and gas operations.
Texas: Natural gas production expanded by 39.8 percent; added 131,867 jobs.
Utah: Natural gas production expanded by 62.8 percent; jobs in energy industries grew in the range of 35 percent to 122 percent.
Virginia: Natural gas production expanded by 65.2 percent. Jobs in Virginia grew by 102.4 percent in the oil and gas pipeline and related structures construction sector.
West Virginia: Natural gas production expanded by 144.2 percent. The growth in jobs in each of the energy sectors for which there is data ranged between 44 percent and 310 percent.
Wyoming: Natural gas production expanded by 15.2 percent. Overall jobs grew most notably in oil and gas pipeline and related structures construction sector – by 268.4 percent.
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With the struggling economy being consistently ranked one of the most important problems in the U.S., the 114th Congress, as well as businesses and entrepreneurs, should take note of this booming industry.
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