Glenn Thompson

I appreciate what all of you do because obviously to make good decisions you need good data to make sound decisions.

Our farmers and agriculture in general are not getting the credit they deserve for their extensive efforts in restoring the Chesapeake Bay.

Thirty-seven programs in the farm bill do not have a budget baseline beyond the expiration of the current farm bill.

Many of these programs, such as the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, were created with the purpose of fostering the creation of the next generation of advanced biofuels.

The first energy title was created in the 2002 Farm Bill, and it was designed to help develop feedstock for renewables fuels.

As we consider these programs, and to what extent they have fulfilled their purpose, we must be aware that we face a significant challenge in the next farm bill.

Today, we will hear from USDA about the farm bill programs they administer under the energy and forestry titles.

I want to welcome everyone to today's hearing to audit USDA energy and forestry programs.

Today we will hear from USDA about the farm bill programs administered under the energy and forestry titles.

The biggest threat to our national security by far would be at whatever point we would rely on a foreign country to provide that for us.

We have a lot of work to do as we continue down the road of preparing for this next farm bill.

We have a responsibility to ensure that our food systems are sustainable and resilient.

It is, and all the related jobs. Absolutely. You're right. It's not the drilling jobs, but it's the hotel jobs and it's the restaurant jobs. I've got manufacturers right now that are sitting with jobs that they can't fill. We hear a lot…

The unemployment rate is lower than the national average is. I have a couple counties in particular. Tioga County is one of them, which is in the heart of the Marcellus natural gas. It is probably the first time in history that that…

I have heard those same concerns. But when you look at the geology in where this drilling is done and you have the layers of Marcellus, and I think you only fracture maybe 18 inches, perhaps, from that horizontal pipeline, so you haven't…

That is my understanding, my observations, where on one site, where this drilling activity goes on, takes up to perhaps 90 days to drill and to frack one of these wells, you can put multiple, at least up to six, on one site. So in terms of…

A lot of redundancy built into it because it's extremely important not to get that cross-contamination.

I think the gentleman is very accurate, and it's multiple, multiple piping with cement in between each one.

Sure. Absolutely. I think that if my good friend would go ahead and put that other board that's up, because when you are talking about the fluid, there is a lot of discussion sometimes about hydrofracking fluid. And this is I think a great…

Those fractures, folks will sometimes be scared by that. They envision these huge caverns that are opened up under the ground. And in fact, these fractures, or fissures I think they are best described, and you have probably seen them…

The public. Absolutely. The United States taxpayers.

I take exception with one of the comments made by one of my colleagues earlier about big oil.

I actually have confidence for the oil, the resources that are privately owned.

We are not talking about the Gulf of Mexico, OK, where the most two recent leases were leased.

There is nothing more important to the competitiveness of this Nation than a qualified workforce.