The Environmental Protection Agency proposed tighter controls Tuesday on the oil and gas industry鈥檚 emissions of methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases that causes climate change.
As world leaders meet in Scotland this week to seek international agreements to slow and mitigate the effects of climate change, federal regulators released a draft of a new rule to require oil and gas companies to monitor and reduce emissions of methane, a gas that is released during the drilling of oil wells and can be leaked from oil and gas equipment.
鈥淚t is now abundantly clear that America is back and leading by example in confronting the climate crisis with bold ambition,鈥� EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a . 鈥淲ith this historic action, EPA is addressing existing sources from the oil and natural gas industry nationwide, in addition to updating rules for new sources, to ensure robust and lasting cuts in pollution across the country.鈥�
The , if approved, could require companies to use specialized equipment to identify the colorless gas on a quarterly basis and repair leaks, as well as impose tighter restrictions on controlling emissions from both new and old wells. The the rule could reduce methane emissions by 41 million tons by 2035. The agency intends to issue a final rule before the end of 2022.
Texas will play a key role in the nation鈥檚 efforts to reduce methane emissions. The state produces the largest share of the nation鈥檚 oil, a major contributor to global methane emissions. But state leaders have protested calls to shift the energy industry 鈥� a key pillar of the state鈥檚 economy 鈥� away from its reliance on producing the greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels.
After Texas needs to reduce its reliance on oil 鈥� and suggested the state could lead the way in a transition to renewable energy sources 鈥� Gov. that said 鈥淧ound Sand鈥� and pointed to high gasoline prices to argue that 鈥淭exas oil and gas is needed right now.鈥�
A spokesperson for the governor did not respond to questions about the proposed methane rule.
Methane emissions are the second-largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide, and methane is commonly referred to as a 鈥減otent鈥� greenhouse gas because of its dramatic ability to warm the earth. Methane traps about 30 to 90 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, , but lasts in the atmosphere for a few decades rather than a few centuries.
For that reason, climate scientists say that cutting methane emissions is one of the most effective short-term tools humanity has to reduce immediate damage from climate change.
The EPA鈥檚 proposed rule comes after that the oil and gas industry has the largest potential of any sector to reduce its methane emissions and as the to dramatically cut the potent greenhouse gas鈥� emissions. It also follows intense questioning of oil and gas company executives by a congressional committee last week.
The committee questioned top executives at major companies including ExxonMobil and Chevron the same day that the president announced the revised that targets $555 billion for climate initiatives.
Congress is to include a fee on methane emissions in the legislation, which oil and gas lobbying groups have opposed. During the House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on climate misinformation Thursday, U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., pressed ExxonMobil, Chevron Corp., Shell and BP executives on their support for trade organizations that have sought to block the fee.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e funding these groups, and they鈥檙e really having an impact,鈥� Khanna said. 鈥淵ou could tell them to knock it off, for the sake of the planet. You could end the lobbying.鈥�
The executives did not commit to ending their support for such groups, instead stating that they would be 鈥渁ctive members.鈥�
The largest source of methane emissions in the U.S. is from fossil fuels, according to a . Sixty percent of methane concentrations in the atmosphere come from human sources, like cow patties, landfills and oil production. Globally, the agriculture and waste sector and the fossil fuel sector contributed roughly the same increases in methane concentrations to the atmosphere in 2017.
Methane emissions are climbing 鈥� and they didn鈥檛 slow last year even as lower economic activity early in the COVID-19 pandemic caused carbon dioxide emissions to fall. Instead, concentrations of methane increased by 15 parts per billion last year, the biggest increase almost four decades ago. Scientists say methane emissions don鈥檛 follow short-term economic activity as closely. For example, the number of cattle was by business closures in 2020, but carbon dioxide emissions fell dramatically when many people stopped driving their cars.
鈥淲hen I see big jumps, that鈥檚 frightening because methane is such a strong warming agent,鈥� said Rob Jackson, a professor of Earth system science at Stanford University. 鈥淲e鈥檙e loading the atmosphere with additional warming.鈥�
The Texas oil and gas industry has been under pressure for years to curb methane emissions that escape during production as natural gas, which is primarily made up of methane and other hydrocarbons, comes up along with oil during fracking.
鈥淓very natural gas leak, or intentional release of natural gas through venting or other processes, constitutes a release of methane,鈥� according to the EPA鈥檚 proposed rule. 鈥淩educing human-caused methane emissions, such as controlling natural gas leaks and releases as proposed in these actions, would contribute substantially to global efforts to limit temperature rise.鈥�
The colorless gas can leak from oil and gas equipment during normal operations. Companies also burn off natural gas in the oilfields when drilling wells or during emergencies, such as when facilities need to shut down on short notice.
At times, the industry burns off excess gas that is unearthed along with oil (a higher-priced product) in a process called flaring. If a flare isn鈥檛 wholly lit, raw methane escapes into the atmosphere.
Routine flaring without permission from regulators is barred by state law, but companies often request exceptions from the rules; the Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees the state鈥檚 oil and gas industry, authorized almost 7,000 flaring and venting exceptions in 2019, . In 2020, the agency granted about 4,500 exceptions, according to agency data, as the COVID-19 pandemic caused an economic downturn in the oil and gas industry.
Railroad Commission spokesperson Andrew Keese said agency data suggests there has been a positive downward trend of flaring in Texas. Keese added that the Railroad Commission revised its exception form last year to require more detailed data, which he said puts the agency in a better position to track compliance and correct potential violations.
But multiple independent analyses, , found that oil and gas companies are flaring gas in the field more frequently than approved by regulators. Instruments to detect methane in West Texas鈥� Permian Basin, a major oil-producing shale play, are leaking raw methane into the air.
Under President Barack Obama鈥檚 administration, the EPA sought to issue rules that would plug those methane leaks in the oilfield, but they were never implemented after the agency rolled them back under the Trump administration.
This week鈥檚 draft rule is stronger than the Obama-era rule. It could impose rules on older oil wells that previously avoided regulation. While it stops short of a flat-out ban on flaring, the rule would require operators to monitor flares to detect malfunctions that result in increased methane emissions.
Texas flares the most gas of any state. It also produces the most oil, 40% of the . Regulators have insisted that they鈥檝e cracked down on flaring, an unpopular practice among both Republicans and Democrats. Flaring in Texas was down 50% in 2020 versus 2019 as the pandemic spurred a downturn in oil production, according to an analysis of satellite data by S&P Global Platts, and Texas oil producers burn less natural gas per barrel of oil produced than in North Dakota.
But 2020 data shows that reducing flaring won鈥檛 be enough to curb emissions of methane from Texas鈥� oilfields. While the amount of flared gas has fallen, methane emissions in the West Texas oilfield have continued to climb due to leaking gases from production facilities, according to data compiled by S&P Global Platts Analytics.
鈥淰enting or leakage occurs frequently, specifically in the Permian Basin,鈥� said Andrew Cooper, a low-carbon crude analyst at S&P Global Platts.
He said equipment and storage leaks, unlit flares and old oil wells contribute to methane emissions. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which regulates air emissions in Texas, would be charged with implementing the EPA鈥檚 rule on such 鈥渇ugitive鈥� emissions (like the methane leaks from equipment).
State leaders resist climate efforts
The Texas Railroad Commission has long been criticized for not taking a stronger stance on methane emissions. But the Republican commissioners, who are elected in statewide races, have loudly protested the claim that they haven鈥檛 controlled the politically unpopular practice of flaring.
鈥淐itizens are not aware of the good job our staff and this industry has done for a cleaner environment,鈥� Chair Wayne Christian said during a meeting last week.
Still, Christian also called the proposed federal rule on methane 鈥渧ery dangerous.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a high-cost risk to every family in the United States,鈥� Christian said.
David Cooney Jr., an attorney in the Railroad Commission鈥檚 office of general counsel, said the agency is 鈥減oised and ready to cooperate鈥� with the federal rules.
U.S. Rep. , R-The Woodlands, said during the committee hearing with oil executives Thursday that the Biden administration鈥檚 climate policies were a 鈥渞elentless attack鈥� on energy workers and argued that political leaders should instead support the oil and gas industry to spur technology to reduce emissions.
鈥淚nstead of vilifying them and trying to end their existence, Congress should be working with them,鈥� Brady said.
Some oil companies have already announced plans to cut back on methane emissions. Royal Dutch Shell by 2025, five years earlier than its previous target, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Despite some industry commitments, the EPA rule, if implemented, would be a sharp shift for Texas oil producers that have enjoyed less stringent rules than producers in neighboring states such as New Mexico and Colorado, which have dramatically reduced flaring, venting and leaks through regulation, according to data compiled by S&P Global Platts Analytics.
Scientists say the benefits to cutting methane concentrations in the atmosphere are significant: It would 鈥渆specially contribute鈥� to reducing climate change-related damages in the near term and decrease peak warming during this century, according to the recent UN report. Methane concentrations in the atmosphere are currently 260% higher than during pre-industrial times.
鈥淲e can do something about the excess methane in the atmosphere in a decade, easily, if we choose to, and have a strong bang for our buck,鈥� said Jackson, the Stanford University scientist.
Mitchell Ferman contributed to this story.
This article originally appeared in at .