2024 will bring comprehensive methane monitoring at Texas well sites
Friday, December 22, 2023
Combating climate change is a major goal of the Biden administration, but new rules governing methane emissions also seek to improve health - especially in major oil-producing states like Texas.
Fossil fuel operations are the largest industrial source of methane - and the Environmental Protection Agency's new rules will dramatically reduce how much methane is allowed to escape those facilities.
Sheila Serna - director of climate science and policy for the Rio Grande International Study Center - said many people are aware of respiratory issues associated with living near oil and gas wells but notes additional health risks.
"There is also also a lot of reproductive issues as well," said Serna. "There's higher rates of miscarriages and anomalies - so that one is a huge concern."
Neighboring New Mexico, the second largest oil-producing state, started enforcing its own methane emissions standards prior to the EPA's federal rules.
Nonetheless, some Texas industry officials worry the directive will create more paperwork and disadvantage smaller operations.
The EPA equates the new rule to taking 28 million gas-powered cars off the road for a year.
The rule will phase out routine flaring of natural gas from new oil wells, and require all well sites and compressor stations to be routinely monitored for leaks.
It also paves the way for third-party watchdog groups to use satellite and other technologies to locate "super-emitting" pollution sites.
Serna said it's a big win for conservationists, but worries about enforcement.
"We saw what the Trump administration did to the EPA - like it dismantled it completely - and it took this long for it to kind-of get up and running again," said Serna. "It was so unfortunate and we just don't want to see that happen again."
Methane is approximately 85% more potent at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
July was the hottest month on record, and the United Nations climate panel warned of growing impacts from climate change - barring major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
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