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US President Joe Biden signed legislation on 30 June to overturn a
regulation set during President Donald Trump's administration that
weakened methane emissions curbs on new oil and natural gas
production and processing sites. Calling it "a return to common
sense and commitment to the common good," Biden said the rule will
result in greater methane reductions from the oil and gas industry,
byond the industry's voluntary programs. "[President Barack Obama]
in 2016 and I put in place a rule that required that companies
capture methane leaks from the wells they were digging. Well, guess
what, they didn't," he said.
Biden's signature came quickly after the US House of
Representatives used the Congressional Review Act (CRA) on 25 June
to revoke the 2020 regulations.
A total of 12 Republicans joined 217 Democrats in a 229-191 vote
to pass the CRA resolution (S.J. Res. 14) t. The CRA is an
oversight tool that allows US lawmakers to introduce a resolution
to overturn recent federal regulations on a simple majority
vote.
The resolution has the effect of reinstating the first-ever
federal standards set in 2016 to plug releases of methane and
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from oil and gas production
processing wells as well as leaks of the highly potent GHG during
storage and transportation.
More methane-related rules could be coming. Biden also ordered
the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which is charged with
writing and enforcing federal air pollution regulations, in a 20
January executive order to strengthen the 2016 regulations for both
existing and new sources by September. The EPA, however, has
indicated in its regulatory agenda that a proposal will be
forthcoming a month later than the order.
Crafted by EPA under Trump, the September 14, 2020 "review" rule targeted by the CRA made
two revisions to the 2016 regulation. First, the EPA took methane
out of the equation entirely through a "novel" reading of the Clean
Air Act, which required it to first determine "that the pertinent
pollutant causes or contributes significantly to dangerous air
pollution."
The EPA's second revision to the 2016 regulation, which came out
a day after the first one in 2020, targeted smog-contributing VOCs
from new oil and gas production and processing wells, but this
remains unaffected by the congressional action.
"Methane is a potent climate-disrupting greenhouse gas that is
responsible for approximately one-third of our warming and
resulting climate disruption," US House Energy and Commerce
Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Democrat-New Jersey, reminded
members of the chamber prior to the vote.
"And the greatest and most cost-effective way to curb methane
pollution over the next decade is through the fossil fuel sector,
which is the largest industrial source of methane emissions in the
United States," he added.
BP America immediately issued a statement in favor of the
congressional resolution, saying the company supports "the direct
federal regulation of methane from new and existing sources across
the value chain."
"Keeping methane in the pipes is good for the planet and for
business. It means that we can sell it as a cleaner fuel source
rather than losing it," Mary Streett, senior vice president of bp
communications & advocacy Americas, wrote.
After the vote, the American Petroleum Institute (API) also tweeted in support of
"cost-effective policies and direct regulation to achieve further
methane emission reductions from new and existing sources."
More reductions needed
Environmental groups praised the passage of the resolution,
saying EPA will now have the opportunity to swiftly move forward
with stronger rules for new sources as well as existing ones.
However, the nonprofit Earthworks said reinstating the Obama-era
regulations is not enough to reach Biden's goal of reducing GHG emissions
by 50-52% by 2030 compared with 2005 levels.
"Even if they were applied to existing sources (the Obama rules
only applied to newly permitted sources), the Obama rules would
only cut methane pollution by 20%," the group said, advocating for
more frequent leak detection and repairs to oil and gas wells that
are leaking methane.
More frequent detection and repairs will lead to fewer releases
of methane, Earthworks spokesman Justin Wasser told Net-Zero
Business Daily.
Lauren Pagel, director of Earthworks, said the EPA should use
the full power of the Clean Air Act to reduce methane emissions
from oil and gas by 65% compared with 2012 levels, or 7.8 million
mt, by 2025. Pagel's recommendation was based on a December 2020 white paper on methane
regulation released by another environmental nonprofit, the Clean
Air Task Force (CATF).
Source: Clean Air Task Force
The paper called for plugging leaks from valves and hatches, oil
and gas drilling wells and pipelines as well as storage tanks,
replacing of natural gas-fueled pneumatic equipment to pump liquids
and open hatches, and reducing venting from storage tanks as well
as oil and gas wells.
Since there were never any methane rules for existing oil and
gas wells, the EPA gets a chance to start with a clean slate, Sarah
Smith, program director for super pollutants at CATF, told Net-Zero
Business Daily 25 June, following the House vote.
As for the oil and gas industry, Smith said: "I think it signals
that the US Congress supports direct regulation of methane from the
oil and gas industry and supports EPA's efforts to advance stronger
standards."
Posted 01 July 2021 by Amena Saiyid, Senior Climate and Energy Research Analyst
RT @SPGlobal: June marks the start of Pride Month, where we commemorate and celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in countries across the globe. S…
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