American Gas - August/September 2013 - (Page 2)

Trust in government may be fading, but that’s not the case with natural gas utilities, which are working to earn and keep the public’s trust every day By Dave MccurDy president’s Message BuildinG a foundation of truSt a recent poll by the Bipartisan Policy Center and USA Today found that more than three-quarters of adults in this country say they can’t trust the government in Washington to do what is right. By a two-to-one margin, Americans think the best way to make major positive changes in our society is through community involvement rather than through local, state, and federal governments. I believe that public service is the highest honor in our democracy, but these days I have mixed emotions about whether I want to associate myself with the actions, or lack thereof, of our elected representatives. As I have seen in my career in the public and private sectors, establishing and continuing trust is essential to the proper function of our society. Natural gas utilities operate in a world clouded by skepticism about whether companies are focused on bottom-line results above the interest of customers. Our nation’s clean and secure energy future will be built upon two things: the more than 2 million miles of natural gas pipelines operated by America’s natural gas utilities, and the continued trust of customers in this foundation fuel. Our members take this responsibility very seriously and work to earn, and keep, the public’s trust every day. You can trust natural gas—now and into the future. Our robust supply of natural gas can meet and sustain a significant share of our future domestic energy needs. When coupled with expanding infrastructure and appropriate regulatory constructs, we envision relative natural gas market stability during the next 10 years and possibly beyond. According to data from the Environmental Protection Agency, emissions from our nation’s natural gas delivery system are low, and America’s natural gas 2 AmericAn GAs august/september 2013 utilities are committed to lowering emissions even further. Our domestic abundance of clean natural gas is delivered via the safest energy delivery system in the nation. September marks the third anniversary of the natural gas pipeline rupture in San Bruno, Calif. —a tragedy felt throughout the country. Our thoughts and prayers continue go out to those who have been affected by this tragic incident. The memory of San Bruno serves as a constant reminder of our commitment to enhancing safety. We invest more than $7 billion each year to maintain the safety and reliability of the natural gas delivery system. Our members have successfully moved policies within state legislatures and before utility regulatory commissions, to accelerate upgrades of their delivery network. As a leading voice for safety in the pipeline industry, we have taken action above and beyond current regulation to help ensure the safe and reliable operation of the nation’s pipelines. This issue of American Gas profiles the work that member companies are doing to enhance the safety of their delivery network and earn the trust of their customers and regulators in the aftermath of pipeline incidents. Their capable and confident leadership understands the task at hand. I have been inspired by their commitment to building trust and by the actions they have taken to communicate the reliability of natural gas. Together, we will work to instill trust in the companies that provide this essential energy to more than 177 million Americans.u President and ceO, dmccurdy@aga.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - August/September 2013

American Gas - August/September 2013
Contents
President’s Message
Subject Index
Dual-Fuel CNG Beauties
Digest
Issues
Issues
Issues
Need to Know
By the Numbers
Places
In Las Vegas, Another Man-Made Wonder
State House
State House
Elm Street
Main Street
A Matter of Trust
Profile
Here Comes the Grid
Marketing
Jobs
Vendor News
Marketplace
Headway

American Gas - August/September 2013