New EPA rule slashes methane emissions from oil and gas industry
The Biden Administration has finalized a rule to significantly cut the U.S. oil and gas industry’s emissions of methane, a main component of natural gas and byproduct of fossil fuel drilling. Methane can have more than 80 times the planet-warming power of carbon dioxide.
Global emissions of this powerful greenhouse gas have surged in recent years and the oil and gas industry is one of the main sources, according to the International Energy Agency.
Environmental Protection Agency administrator Michael Regan announced Saturday at the United Nations climate change summit that the federal government would require oil and gas producers to detect and fix methane leaks for the first time. The new rule would also end routine flaring of natural gas that is a byproduct of fossil fuel drilling.
The new rule is estimated to cut emissions of methane by nearly 80% through 2038, preventing about 58 million tons of the greenhouse gas from escaping into the atmosphere. That's equivalent to the climate impact of taking more than 300 million gas-powered cars off the road for a year.
"That's really significant," said Patrice Tomcik, the National Field Director for Moms Clean Air Force, an advocacy organization. "And on top of that, [the rule] is going to reduce other harmful pollutants, so it can prevent up to 97,000 cases of asthma and 35,000 missed school days a year. So for children, this is going to be really important for their health."
Meghan Miles with Duke Energy said the utility is still reviewing the rule but that it "continues to reduce methane leaks on its system with our advanced methane leak detection platform using satellites, sensors and other cutting-edge technologies to detect leaks and measure real-time methane emissions on our natural gas distribution system." Miles said Duke Energy is aiming to reduce methane emissions to net-zero by 2030 for its natural gas business.
Fifty major oil and gas companies, including Exxon, signed a pledge to cut their methane emissions by the end of the decade.
News of the regulation came just before Vice President Kamala Harris announced at the UN climate summit that the U.S. would pledge another $3 billion to the Green Climate Fund to help developing nations adapt to the climate crisis and cut fossil fuel pollution.
