During inquiries into natural gas exports in the 1950s, the ERCB recommended the creation of a province-wide natural gas gathering system. The thinking behind this idea was twofold: first, it would be more efficient to develop a single gathering system than to let gathering systems evolve piecemeal. Second, such a system would eliminate the possibility of federal regulation of gas within the province. Alberta was jealous of its hard-won control over natural resources and saw gas transportation within the province as an aspect of resource management. The province was also very conscious of the potential of natural gas and its products for provincial industrial development.