In its latest concession to the oil and gas sector, the Trump administration is expected to announce plans today to weaken rules that protect against methane leaks.
Methane is a smog-forming pollutant and a powerful greenhouse gas, with up to 80 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide over a 20-year horizon. It is the primary component of the “natural gas” produced by the fossil fuel industry and routinely leaks from oil and gas wells and pipelines.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is reversing course on its previous efforts to plug those leaks. As part of President Donald Trump’s deregulatory agenda, the EPA plans to undo Biden-era rules that were expected to cut methane emissions by 80 percent over 14 years.
Methane has contributed to approximately 30 percent of global warming
The EPA previewed the rule change earlier this month, saying in a press release that it was “days away” from making the proposal. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin says the rollbacks will save oil and gas companies $45 billion, while the previous rules would have incurred $18 billion in regulatory costs.
“This proposal addresses many of the problems American oil and gas producers and operators have raised with us,” Zeldin said in the October 7 press release. “The Trump EPA is committed to fixing this so the U.S. can reach its full energy potential.”
The agency is expected to step back standards for so-called “marginal wells”—old wells that produce little fuel but create an outsize amount of methane pollution from leaks. These wells are responsible for half of the industry’s methane emissions despite only producing 6 percent of U.S. oil and gas, according to ProPublica. The EPA is also expected to end the Super Emitter Program, which notified oil and gas infrastructure operators of large methane releases reaching 100 kilograms per hour or more.
Methane has driven about 30 percent of global warming so far. But unlike carbon dioxide, which can linger in the atmosphere for hundreds or thousands of years, methane dissipates in a little over a decade. That makes eliminating methane emissions, particularly from unintentional leaks, one of the fastest and most straightforward ways to stop global temperatures from rising.
The EPA’s rollbacks quickly triggered strong opposition from health and environmental advocates. “Any proposed rollback to the federal methane rule is a slap in the face to families who are exposed to oil and gas pollution where they live, work, and play,” Celerah Hewes, senior manager for state field campaigns at Moms Clean Air Force, said in an email ahead of the expected announcement. “For over a decade, our group has been fighting for methane protections for our families—and we were making progress. Today’s announcement from the EPA is a massive blow to efforts to safeguard our children’s health and our climate.”
The Biden-era methane rules were estimated to yield up to $98 billion in benefits by reducing climate risks and health costs from air pollution, even after factoring in compliance costs. Plugging leaks was expected to recover up to $13 billion worth of natural gas.