Congressional report reveals fossil fuel companies misled public on natural gas’s role in climate change crisis.

The results of a three-year congressional investigation into oil and gas companies have deceived the public about their industry’s role in climate change have been revealed. The report revealed that fossil fuel companies have been promoting the idea of natural gas as a “bridge” fuel that can aid in the transition from coal to clean energy, but also knew that gas was not a clean choice due to its high emissions. This is the first time these companies have acknowledged internally that they know natural gas is a climate disaster and yet still promote it. Companies claim natural gas can be viable in a clean energy future if its emissions are captured, but have only limited investments towards lower-carbon technologies and plan only modest increases in the coming years. An investigation also revealed a gap in pipeline oversight, with federal regulators leaving monitoring of pipeline construction largely to private inspectors paid by developers.