Garbage Lasagna’: Dumps Are A Big Driver Of Warming, Study Says. According to the New York Times, “They’re vast expanses that can be as big as towns: open landfills where household waste ends up, whether it’s vegetable scraps or old appliances. These landfills also belch methane, a powerful, planet-warming gas, on average at almost three times the rate reported to federal regulators, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science. The study measured methane emissions at roughly 20 percent of 1,200 or so large, operating landfills in the United States. It adds to a growing body of evidence that landfills are a significant driver of climate change, said Riley Duren, founder of the public-private partnership Carbon Mapper, who took part in the study.” [New York Times, 3/29/24 (=)]
Court Validates BLM’s Climate Analysis, Dings Agency For Failing To Show How It Factored In Oil And Gas Lease Sale. According to Oil City News, “The Bureau of Land Management ‘reasonably exhausted available tools’ to analyze the climate implications of June 2022 oil and gas lease sales in Wyoming and five other western states, but it failed to show its work or explain how the analysis factored into its decision to proceed with the sales, particularly in Wyoming. However, the sale in Wyoming, which included 122 lease parcels spanning some 120,000 mineral lease acres, is largely invalidated based on vagueness in the bureau’s climate analysis decision making, as well as failures to adequately consider impacts to drinking water and wildlife. But what that will mean in practice has yet to be determined by the court. That’s the upshot of two separate rulings handed down Friday by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper regarding two separate lawsuits brought by conservation groups challenging the sales.” [Oil City News, 3/29/24 (=)]
Senators Praise New BLM Methane Rule. According to Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, “Colorado’s U.S. senators are hailing the Bureau of Land Management’s finalizing of a rule to rein in methane emissions from oil and gas operations, a decade after the state adopted the first such regulation in the nation.” [Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, 3/29/24 (+)]
Gordon: New BLM Methane Rule Harmful To Wyoming Oil And Gas Producers. According to Wyoming Tribute Eagle, “Citing the outcome as troubling on several fronts, Gov. Mark Gordon criticized the Department of Interior’s final rule released this week from the Bureau of Land Management on Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation – commonly known as the methane waste prevention rule. The governor called for more scrutiny on the rule to determine whether BLM has exceeded its statutory authority by adding more burdens to oil and gas producers and stacking on additional emission reductions efforts from the Environmental Protection Agency. Individually and combined, the effect will be harmful to Wyoming oil and gas producers, a news release from Gordon’s office said. ‘BLM continues to oppress the consumer by imposing ridiculous regulations in an attempt to hinder the oil and gas industry in the Biden crusade’s appeal to their environmental groups. They will require oil and gas companies to pay royalties on flared gas, resulting in consumers paying more to heat their homes,’ Gordon said. ‘The long-term effect is less production and fewer jobs, resulting in a net loss.’” [Wyoming Tribune Eagle, 3/29/24 (-)]