23.3053.03000
Sixty-eighth
Legislative Assembly HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 3015
of North Dakota
Introduced by
Representatives Mock, Bosch, Ista, Mitskog, Nelson, Novak, Porter, Richter, Roers Jones
Senators Bekkedahl, Kessel, Patten
1 A concurrent resolution urging the federal government to recognize natural gas and nuclear
2 energy as environmentally sustainable economic activities.
3 WHEREAS, reliable, clean, and affordable energy is vital to the economic growth and
4 overall interests of the United States; and
5 WHEREAS, natural gas is an essential part of America's energy mix with 50 percent of the
6 homes in the United States using natural gas for home and water heating and 39 percent of all
7 electricity generated in the United States being generated by natural gas; and
8 WHEREAS, natural gas is a renewable fuel generated from multiple sources across all
9 regions of the United States and is the cleanest fossil fuel on earth; and
10 WHEREAS, the abundance of clean-burning natural gas in the United States is a source of
11 tremendous economic benefits for our country, directly supporting thousands of jobs, improving
12 household disposable income, and contributing to state and local revenues, giving the United
13 States a global energy advantage; and
14 WHEREAS, as of July 1, 2022, 92 nuclear reactors were operating at 54 nuclear power
15 plants in 28 states, which supply about 20 percent of total annual electricity and since 1990, the
16 United States has been the world's largest producer of nuclear power, accounting for more than
17 30 percent of worldwide nuclear generation of electricity; and
18 WHEREAS, the absence of further lifetime extensions and new projects to extend the life of
19 nuclear reactors could result in an additional four billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions; and
20 WHEREAS, plans to close existing facilities would result in approximately 25 percent of
21 existing nuclear capacity being lost; and
22 WHEREAS, nuclear power is the second largest source of low-carbon electricity and the
23 implications of fading nuclear energy are numerous, including electricity security concerns; and
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Sixty-eighth
Legislative Assembly
1 WHEREAS, on July 6, 2022, the European Parliament authorized the Complementary
2 Delegated Act, which adds natural gas and nuclear power plants to the European Union
3 Taxonomy and labels investments in natural gas and nuclear power plants as climate-friendly;
4 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF
5 NORTH DAKOTA, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN:
6 That the Sixty-eighth Legislative Assembly urges the federal government to recognize
7 natural gas and nuclear energy as environmentally sustainable economic activities; and
8 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Secretary of State forward copies of this resolution
9 to the President of the United States and each member of the North Dakota Congressional
10 Delegation.
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