European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 30, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                I Iraj Woride off own Oil was expensive than sedated policies to pro the huge easily induced supplies discovered in the Middle East and the govern text the Domestic Oil Industry starting in 1958.despite this Protection us. Oil companies did not god Domestic Oil or expand production capacity As fast As the nation increased its demand. Even under quotas Oil imports  so did the pressure to remove the quotas and let in a flood of lower priced foreign Oil. Defenders of the quota system warned that greater dependence on imparts would leave the United states vulnerable to political pressure by supplier nations critics said the quotas were Only a Drain America first program destroying Domestic reserves faster than necessary. In april 1973. Rather than allow Oil shortages to devel 41.8 new York Timil Garv Settle a Gas pump for tractors in the Middle of a wheat Field in Kansas what happens if it runs dry natural Gas and the weaning of America by Bill Crider associated press he Pilot ought will be one of the first victims of president Carter s Energy program for the weaning of  unblinking Little jets of flame Are on millions of natural Gas Kitchen ranges and Heaters across the nation. It is staggering to think How much Gas they have burned Over the past 50  innocent Little lights bum 20 to 30 per cent of the Gas consumed by the aver age Kitchen Range in return for relieving the Cook of the Drudgery of striking a  matches Are cheaper or an electric  the Pilot Light remains a Symbol of the carelessly sinful Energy hog years that led to the complications political and technical which now confront us. When the Pilot tight was born Natu ral Gas was the cheapest cleanest fuel in the world. It sold for Only a few pen Nies per thousand cubic feet it was considered so worthless Oil men Tore their hair when drillers hit Gas instead of crude. Drillers often simply set fire to Gas whistling up the Hole and moved on to Drill else where leaving behind a pillar of flame. Sometimes it burned for years. Oil men called them flares. At night you could almost Cross South Louisiana under near Daylight from the Light of those flares recalled former gov. Sam Jones of Lake Charles. Some flaring still exists. In Oil Rich saudi Arabia an estimated eight billion cubic feel a year has been going up in flares but the government is trying to get a better grip on things. A Man before his time1. Jones lost a 1910s political fight to conserve Louisiana s Gas resources. In those Days an Industry could swing a Long term contract for Gas at about six cents per 1,000 cubic feet a unit of Mea sure known in the business As an Kcf. Nobody buys Gas for a few pennies any More. The department of labor says that. After a series of Price rises Over a six month Span Gas Cost the average Householder about jz.15 per Kcf As of last March. The Federal Power commission pc let the Price at the wellhead where Gas goes into a pipeline move up from 52 cents per Kcf to $1.42 last october. It is now up to $1.45.that s for interstate Gas. Which is under pc control. Uncontrolled intrastate Gas Sells for up to $2.25 an Kcf. Suddenly waste is not Nice it is expensive. Worst of All the Supply of Gas seems , when president Carter out lined to Congress his program to conserve vote natural Gas. It gave a lot of Gas company executives the sour burps. The Over All tone of his policy toward Gas is that we Are going to have to shrink its  complained George h. Law rence president of the american Gas association a a in  Are going to be lobbying Congress for some changes and we Are going to have lots of allies he said. Industry finance even environmentalists will be on our  the Carrot and stick program envisioned by president Carter would Spur the search for new Gas Fields by fixing the wellhead Price for All new Gas. Interstate or intrastate to $1.75 per Kcf. Expensive new Gas would be allocated to Industrial use to keep commercial and residential rates from going much  30 per cent of the nation s Energy comes from Gas. To reduce demand big industries that Burn Gas to run their boilers would be pushed to switch to Coal especially Power  Gas to fire steam boilers is consid ered great waste. The Federal Energy administration has directed 32 Power plants to switch to Coal 31 others have been advised they too Are on the  big industries expect such notices soon with the first to go to plants which would need at least 100.000 tons of Coal a year to substitute for Oil or Gas now burned. Worriers among Gas executives wonder if they won t wind up with million Miles of underground pipeline and distribution Mains without enough customers. Their counterattack shortages Are due to Price control. Free prices on a free Market would bring Gas a plenty. But president Carter s chief Energy adviser James r. Schlesinger. Said recently that some Gas producers privately say they will make a lot of Money under the administration s new pricing plan. He said that representatives of unnamed comp names favored a Cap of prices rather than deregulation to save them the embarks smell of a Sharp run up in prices. But David h. Foster vice president of the natural Gas Supply committee took Issue with Schlesinger s statements and said that natural Gas prices must be deregulated to give the Industry an incentive to discover and produce More Gas. What Are the chances of Carter s plan passing Congress its Fate seems linked with Carter legislation on Oil prices Proba Bly the second most controversial part of the Carter package after his gasoline tax. Opposition comes mainly from the con Gressmen from the Oil and Gas producing states. They Don t like the plan s Reliance on continued controls. They and the re publican minority Are expected to launch Amajor assault on both pieces of legislation. In the end it seems certain that Congress will allow some Price rises on both Oil and natural Gas. With the democratic Leader ship vowing to fight hard for the Carter approach. How much Gas is there is United Sites Fields there is dispute be tween Blue sky optimists and Bard noses. Lawrence is among the optimists. Processes for converting Coal into Gas Are being perfected he said. He also estimated there is Between 800 and 1.200 trillion cubic feet of recoverable Gas underground. Liis guarantees be tween 40 and 60 years of additional Supply from Domestic sources  furthermore said Lawrence 1,200 tril lion cubic feet of Gas lurks in Coal mine seams. 2.000 trillion feet in tight Rock Mountain formations and up to 100.000 tril lion cubic feet is dissolved in a hot Salt water strata found in Geo pressure zones 15, 000 feet Down mainly across Louisiana and Texas. 197228.9 212/1971 25.8 . Reliance on imported Oil percentage of total 19753.966 . Sales of Large 1972. 2-238 . Sales of Small cars 19711.928 19701.2714 the stars and stripes monday. May 30, 1977 pages 14/15