70,000 Louisiana jobs are riding on Biden’s plan for oil, gas

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - As many as 70,000 Louisiana jobs are riding on the President-elect Joe Biden’s plan for oil and gas. Some changes he has proposed could eventually mean layoffs at plants in the area.

You use it to drive, heat your home, and in ways you don’t even realize. One barrel of oil produces over 6,000 products from a dish to lipstick. However, getting that fuel from the dirt can harm the environment.

Many people across the country, say it’s time for a change when it comes to protecting the earth, including Biden. At the final presidential debate Biden said, “I would transition from the oil industry, yes. I would transition…it is a big statement because the oil industry pollutes significantly.”

However, that oil industry is also responsible for a chunk of Louisiana’s economy. Changes could be coming for thousand of you who survive off oil and gas production like Betty Lynn Mobley.

“This is honest to god, people eating, not eating, paying their bills, not paying their bills," Mobley said.

If Biden follows through on his green energy campaign, some oil companies would not be allowed to drill new holes in the gulf. Plus, Biden says he’ll roll back the President’s tax cuts, which almost certainly means gas giants would have to cough up more cash.

“I think people have a legitimate right to be concerned with this green wave that is coming in. We saw under the Obama Administration, the rules and regulations that come into play that President Trump eliminated very quickly, I think will be back in place,” says Bill Guidry who is a managing partner of Key Operating and Production.

Yet, Biden’s plan aims to clean up the air by 2050, which would keep Louisianans healthier and benefit the state’s solar and wind companies. Eliminating some pollution could slow coastal erosion. Some producers like Shell were already headed in this direction before voters decided the election.

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