CEO DATELINE - Oil groups sue EPA to overturn methane limits
CEO DATELINE - Oil groups sue EPA to overturn methane limits
- August 4, 2016 |
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Walt Williams
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Nearly two dozen state and national groups representing oil producers are filing suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for adopting new limits on methane emissions from oil and natural gas operations.
Among the groups is the Independent Petroleum Association of America, which called the new rule "excessive, " saying it would do little to protect the environment.
"After more than a year of trying to communicate industry's concerns to the EPA on the economic burdens associated with this new rule, during an already economically challenging time for the industry, independent producers were compelled to pursue legal pathways since the final rule omits flexibility for smaller, independent companies," IPAA Executive Vice President Lee Fuller said. http://bit.ly/2axsK2D
EPA announced the new rule earlier this year as part of an Obama administration initiative to fight climate change. Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere.
Oil and gas operations account for a third of methane emissions in the U.S., according to the EPA. Landfills and agriculture also release large amounts of the gas into the atmosphere, although the new limits target the oil and gas industry.
The American Petroleum Institute also is challenging the rule. In a statement, the association noted methane emissions from oil and gas operations had already been on the decline before the EPA got involved.
"Even as oil and natural gas production has risen dramatically, carbon emissions have fallen, thanks to industry leadership and investment in new technologies," API Managing Counsel John Wagner said. "Greater use of clean, affordable natural gas has pushed carbon emissions from power generation to their lowest level in more than 20 years." http://bit.ly/2ao5j60
Texas and North Dakota also have sued to overturn the new emission limits.
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