Methane Emissions From Oil And Gas Are Even Worse Than Previously Thought. According to CBA Money Watch, “Recent research indicates that the fossil fuel industry is responsible for far more methane than previously believed. Experts say slashing methane emissions is essential to staving off the worst effects of global warming, with the United Nations calling it ‘the strongest lever we have to slow climate change.’ Yet a new analysis of satellite data shows that fossil fuel companies — which contribute up to half of human-caused methane emissions around the globe — are falling far short of their pledges to eliminate the environmentally destructive hydrocarbon.” [CBS Money Watch, 8/21/21]
NM Takes Multi-Pronged Approach To Curbing Methane Emissions. According to Albuquerque Journal, “Last year, New Mexico’s state government worked with federal regulators to document aerial footage of oil and gas sites. The verdict: Permian Basin storage tanks and flares were leaking methane and other air pollutants at ‘higher than expected rates.’ Before this year, industry self-reporting of venting and flaring natural gas to New Mexico regulatory agencies has lacked specific emissions data. Operators also did not have to report the specific reasons for flaring or venting, and inspections were limited.” [Albuquerque Journal, 8/20/21]
Methane Emissions From Low Producing Wells Must Be Regulated. According to Daily Item, “Pennsylvania’s history is a story of resource extraction coupled with a dismal failure to hold corporations accountable to the impacts of pollution and environmental degradation left in its wake. Adding urgency to our state’s stewardship failures is a burgeoning climate catastrophe, the existential crisis of our time. Guided by science and common sense, we are advocating for responsible energy development that addresses the climate-harming emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases.” [Daily Item, 8/21/21]
Op-Ed: Methane Is Flaring Out Of Control. Biden Administration, Congress Must Step In. According to Truth Out, “This summer, methane got a nickname that stuck. Climate scientists and policy analysts have been calling the greenhouse gas a ‘low-hanging fruit’ for years, but the term seems to have caught on more broadly among world leaders, journalists and organizers, due in part to a major United Nations report on methane and the most dire Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment issued yet. Methane is the second greatest contributor to the climate emergency after carbon dioxide, but unlike CO2, it only sticks around the atmosphere for about a decade. So cutting methane emissions drastically and immediately can have a sizable impact on keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius and thereby averting the most catastrophic impacts of climate change, such as global food shortage.” [Truth Out, 8/21/21]
D.C. Circuit Rejects FERC’s Analysis Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions And Environmental Justice Issues For Texas LNG Facilities. According to National Law Review, “On August 3, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (DC Circuit) rejected the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) environmental analysis of a group of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) pipeline and export facilities near Brownsville, Texas, concluding that FERC had failed to adequately analyze both the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) associated with the facilities and their impacts on minority and low-income communities. Vecinos Para el Bienestar de la Comunidad Costera v. FERC, 2021 WL 3354747 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 3, 2021). Although the Court ultimately declined to vacate FERC’s certificates for the LNG facilities, the decision illustrates the necessity of carefully evaluating GHG, Environmental Justice (EJ), and other environmental issues early in the permitting process to avoid delays and the danger of having project permits vacated on appeal.” [National Law Review, 8/20/21]
Q&A: What Is Methane, And Why Does It Matter? According to Albuquerque Journal, “Why is New Mexico focusing on the oil and gas industry’s methane pollution when methane also comes from natural sources and livestock? Livestock and manure emissions make up about 36% of U.S. methane emissions. Natural gas and petroleum systems come in second at 30%, and landfills contribute 17%. In New Mexico, most methane emissions come from the oil and gas industry, according to the state’s latest climate change report. The New Mexico Department of Agriculture is working to identify greenhouse gas emissions from land and agriculture. Who regulates methane emissions? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state environmental agencies make and enforce rules about methane pollution in the oil and gas industry.” [Albuquerque Journal, 8/20/21]
Op-Ed: Citizens' Climate Lobby: Replacing Natural Gas With Hydrogen. According to Citizens' Climate Lobby, “Whether you are a climate change believer or denier, it’s clear that our planet is in the throes of worsening storms, heat waves, and sea level rise. The Aug. 9 report from The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) adds context to these observations. Climate change is already affecting every region on earth in multiple ways (and) the changes we experience will increase with additional warming, they say.” [Holland Sentinel, 8/20/21]
Scientists Say The World Urgently Needs To Cut Methane Emissions. The Politics Aren't As Simple. According to Politico, “The Biden administration’s emerging efforts to slash emissions of methane — a greenhouse gas triggering alarms across the globe — is setting the stage for a new clash among lawmakers, agricultural interests and the energy industry. Carbon dioxide commands most of the attention when it comes to plans to combat climate change, but the Biden administration and some Democrats are shifting focus to methane, the greenhouse gas second-most responsible for heating the planet.” [Politico, 8/23/21]