Clean Air Council Calls for the Strongest EPA Methane Rules Possible for the Oil And Gas Sector as Public Comment Period Closes
[January 31, 2022, Philadelphia, PA] – The public comment period for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) updated New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and first-ever Emissions Guidelines for existing oil and gas sources officially closes today, and Clean Air Council is urging EPA Administrator Regan to finalize the most comprehensive methane rules to aggressively combat the climate crisis. The Council considers EPA’s proposal a step in the right direction, especially the current proposal’s requirement for “no-bleed” pneumatic controllers for all new and existing sources, but the leak detection and repair (LDAR) provisions, which are key to reducing emissions, must be strengthened. The Council also urges the EPA to include a ban on routine flaring, rather than mere reductions and monitoring of flaring activities.
Statement from Clean Air Council Executive Director and Chief Counsel Joseph Otis Minott, Esq. on EPA’s Methane Proposal:
“After receiving over 400,000 public comments, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must act now and strengthen key elements of this proposal to more comprehensively protect public health and aggressively fight the climate crisis. The public demands and deserves action on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, and I call on EPA Administrator Regan to follow the science and use the full force of the Clean Air Act to finalize the strongest and most comprehensive methane rules. Methane is an extremely powerful greenhouse gas contributing to one-third of the climate chaos U.S. residents are currently experiencing, including 688 deaths and $145 billion in damages caused by extreme weather in 2021.
In Pennsylvania, methane pollution from the oil and gas industry has played a large part in the rise of asthma and other respiratory illnesses as well as increased heat and precipitation. Once gas extraction data from 2021 is finalized, Pennsylvania could come close to surpassing Texas as the nation’s leading gas driller. The health and safety of our communities is at stake. Pennsylvania residents are depending on federal safeguards that will eliminate routine flaring and require routine monitoring at smaller, leak-prone wells. Anything less is an unacceptable missed opportunity to protect our health and our future.”
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