Where in the United States Are Oil and Gas Resources Concentrated Enough for Commercial Production?
Within the United States, crude oil is produced in 31 states and off the coasts of Alaska, California, Louisiana, and Texas. The top crude oil producing states are Texas, Alaska, California, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. About one-fourth of the crude oil produced in the U.S. is produced offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. Over the last several decades, the amount of domestically produced crude oil has been decreasing while the use of products made from crude oil has been increasing. About 58% of crude oil and petroleum products are imported. Natural gas is found in 33 states. In 2006, the U.S.-marketed production of natural gas was 19.4 trillion cubic ft (Tcf). The top natural gas-producing states were Texas (5.5 Tcf), Wyoming (1.8 Tcf), Oklahoma (1.7 Tcf), New Mexico (1.6 Tcf), Louisiana (1.4 Tcf), and Colorado (1.2 Tcf). Historical U.S. oil and natural gas production is shown in the United States Geological Survey (USGS) map above. The USGS has also produced a short video clip of U.S. oil and
