Aug 18, 2015 5 min read

The Obama administration Tuesday proposed cutting methane emissions from U.S. oil and gas production by nearly half over the next decade, part of on ongoing push by President Barack Obama to curb climate change.

The administration’s target is to cut methane from oil and gas drilling by 40 to 45 percent by 2025, compared to 2012 levels. The move was not unexpected; officials set the same goal in a preliminary blueprint in January. Still, by moving forward with the official proposal, Obama is adding to a list of energy regulations that drew applause from environmentalists and ire from energy advocates.

To help meet the goal, the administration issued a rule cutting emissions from new and modified oil and natural gas wells, along with updated standards for drilling to reduce leakage from wells on public lands.

The rule would require energy producers to find and repair leaks at oil and gas wells and capture gas that escapes from wells that use a common drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

Officials estimate the rule would cost industry from $320 million to $420 million in 2025, with reduced health care costs and other benefits totaling about $460 million to $550 million.

“Today, through our cost-effective proposed standards, we are underscoring our commitment to reducing the pollution fueling climate change and protecting public health while supporting responsible energy development, transparency and accountability,” EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said in a prepared statement.

The administration is expected to finalize the rules next year shortly before Obama leaves office.

Methane, the key component of natural gas, tends to leak during oil and gas production. Although it makes up just a sliver of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, it is far more powerful than the more prevalent gas carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. That makes methane a top target for environmentalists concerned about global warming.

The announcement drew praise from the environmental community, while an industry group noted it has been steadily reducing emissions through best practices.

The Clean Air Council said it and other clean air advocates across Pennsylvania welcomed EPA’s new methane standards, which it said will have a positive impact on Pennsylvania residents’ air and public health. Noting the EPA’s rules include a voluntary reduction program for existing sources, the council cited a 2014 study that found about 90 percent of oil and gas methane emissions in 2018 will come from existing sources built before 2012.

According to the council, environmental groups are also callilng for additonal rules from EPA to cover existing sources and are asking the state Department of Environmental Protection to develop “best-in-the-nation standards” to address air pollution leaks from the oil and gas industry.

The Environmental Defense Council said Monday’s proposal “begins the important work of ensuring that the oil and gas industry reduces this pollution.

“There is ample evidence that technologies and practices exist to significantly cut methane pollution from the oil and gas industry,” EDF said in a statement. “Some leading companies have adopted these practices, but too few have, which is why emissions remain unacceptably high.”

But Dave Spigelmyer, president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, which represents natural gas production companies and their supply chain partners working in the Marcellus Shale, took a different view of Monday’s announcement.

“It cannot be lost on anyone that shale-related methane emissions continue to steeply drop as natural gas production sharply climbs. These positive results are a function of the industry’s widespread use of operational best practices and continuous investments aimed at protecting and enhancing our environment, especially air quality.

“We need common sense policies that encourage job-creating shale development, which has helped drive U.S. CO2 emissions from power generation to a 27-year-low, not duplicative, costly and unnecessary regulations that undercut energy security and economic opportunity.”

Spigelmyer’s comments paralleled those of Jack Gerard, president of the American Petroleum Institute, which is the trade organization for the U.S. oil and gas industry.

“The industry has already led the significant reduction in methane through innovation and existing regulations,” Gerard said in a news release.

“The last thing we need is more duplicative and costly regulation that could increase the cost of energy for Americans. Even as oil and natural gas production has surged, methane emissions from hydraulically fractured natural gas wells have fallen nearly 79 percent since 2005, and CO2 emissions are down to 27-year lows. This is due to industry leadership and significant investments in new technologies.”

With his presidency drawing to a close, Obama has been in a rush to propose and then finalize sweeping regulations targeting greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.

The methane rule follows a landmark regulation Obama finalized earlier this month to cut carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants by 32 percent. The plan, a key element of Obama’s climate change strategy, drew immediate legal challenges from power companies and Republican-led states.

Obama also proposed regulations targeting carbon pollution from airplanes and set new standards to improve fuel efficiency and reduce carbon dioxide pollution from trucks and vans.

In total, Obama set a goal to cut overall U.S. emissions by 26 percent to 28 percent over the next decade, as he seeks to leave a legacy of using the full range of his executive power to fight climate change and encourage other countries to do the same.