Washington, D.C. — Today, the Obama administration finalized the first-ever pollution reduction standards for methane emissions from new and modified oil and gas operations. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, and the oil and gas industry is the largest industrial source of this pollution. This new standard is an important step toward achieving the Obama administration’s goal of reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sector 40 percent to 45 percent by 2025.
Greg Dotson, Vice President of Energy Policy at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement in response to the Obama administration’s new rule:
After witnessing the worst methane leak in history earlier this year, we know all too well the serious impacts of unchecked methane pollution. Today, President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency issued new safeguards to protect Americans by placing limits on methane emissions from new oil and gas operations. We applaud this leadership and look forward to additional and swift action to tackle methane pollution from the oil and gas operations that already exist across the country.
Related resource: 5 Reasons Why the EPA Should Limit Methane Pollution from All Sources in the Oil and Gas Sector by Alison Cassady
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.
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