MISSION
ABOUT US
Western States and Tribal Nations (WSTN) is a unique initiative created to foster economic development in the rural communities of Western States, promote tribal self-determination and improve the environment by eliminating natural gas flaring and making cleaner fuels available to Asian energy markets. The key to unlocking this global potential is facilitating the global export of Western natural gas through LNG facilities on North America’s West Coast.
The genesis of WSTN is rooted in a study commissioned by the Colorado Energy Office under the administration of former Gov. John Hickenlooper, the Utah Governor’s Office of Energy Development, and the Ute Indian Tribe through a grant by Colorado Mesa University’s Unconventional Energy Center.
The 2019 report saw promise in natural gas exports from Western sources because of their relative proximity to the Pacific Ocean (half the shipping distance than to comparable facilities in the Gulf of Mexico), significant and available pipeline infrastructure in place and unprecedented LNG demand from Asian countries. The report, released in April 2019, saw promise in natural gas exports from Western sources because of their relative proximity to the Pacific Ocean (half the shipping distance than to comparable facilities in the Gulf of Mexico), significant and available pipeline infrastructure in place and unprecedented LNG demand from Asian countries.
According to a 2021 WSTN study, LNG produced in Rockies basins and exported from the North American West Coast to China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan would produce net life cycle emissions reductions of between 42%-55% if used to replace coal-fired energy generation.
VISION
WSTN’s vision is to encourage, support and advocate for a robust and sustainable North American natural gas industry that exports gas produced under stringent environmental standards. These U.S. natural gas exports are proven to help other nations realize rapid emissions reductions while generating decades of economic development for our rural communities and sovereign tribal nations in the western U.S.
Western States and Tribal Nations exists to provide leadership and comprehensive collaboration among public and private stakeholders to advance the three principles of rural economic development, tribal self-determination and lowering global emissions by developing and offering lower-emitting fuel alternatives to growing international markets. WSTN is committed to collaborating through education, research and innovation to promote all paths evolving toward a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.
WSTN believes that transparency in engagement and action, fact-based dialogue based upon science and the application of global geopolitical and environmental perspectives to our issues together create the greatest opportunities to realize our environmental and economic goals.