By Michael Douglas
July 3, 2022
Source: Akron Beacon Journal
Photo / Image Source: Unsplash, Noah Kroes
A changing climate doesn’t relent. Not for pandemic-era inflation. Or the brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine, or the Jan. 6 committee, or an unrestrained Supreme Court.
Roughly one-half of global greenhouse gases emitted since the 1800s have been generated the past 30 years — in other words, since the need for mitigating action has been plain. Yet, now, countries seek to expand production of oil and natural gas, leading drivers of climate change, in a bid to ease higher prices.
As pressing as other priorities are, climate change requires an immediate and ambitious response. Thus, Congress and the Biden White House have reason to enact the president’s $500 billion investment in clean energy and other steps to cope with a warming planet. The moment also merits something less eye-catching yet plenty significant, the president adopting a strong rule for reducing methane emissions, the final version in the works.
Methane rates as the second most prevalent source of greenhouse gases, after carbon dioxide. It is largely the product of oil and gas operations, and most potent at trapping heat in the atmosphere, outpacing carbon dioxide by as much as 30 times.
The story of the rule follows a familiar path. The Obama White House initiated the effort, the first of its kind, unveiling a proposal in 2016 to reduce methane emissions at new and modified gas wells. Donald Trump rescinded the regulation. Now, President Joe Biden has revived the effort.
In November, his administration advanced a promising rule. Most impressive, the plan calls for covering not just new and modified operations but the many existing rigs across the country, too, including tens of thousands in Ohio. The federal Environmental Protection Agency calculates the rule would reduce methane emissions by 41 million tons from 2023 to 2035.
The agency says that amount is equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted by all U.S. passenger cars and commercial aircraft in 2019.
The rule calls for comprehensive monitoring programs to address methane leaks and standards to curb the routine flaring and venting of methane, more prevalent in Texas, Oklahoma and North Dakota.
As part of its rulemaking, the agency has collected public comment, and a line of thinking has emerged: Find a way to include smaller wells in a regular and effective monitoring regime. No surprise the agency worries about applying an excessive burden. That explains consideration of a single inspection for the entire life of a smaller well. Researchers at the University of Cincinnati calculate that many such operations in Southeast Ohio produce the equivalent of less than one barrel of oil per week. They also report, tellingly, such smaller wells are prone to substantial leakage of methane.
Their findings are reinforced by a recent study that found smaller wells account for roughly one-half of the methane emitted from all wells in the country. They do so while generating just 6% of the nation’s oil and gas.
The study adds that smaller wells emit methane up to 12 times the national average, as problematic for the climate as 88 coal-fired power plants.
More, researchers at the Environmental Defense Fund explain that many smaller wells do not qualify as family shops. Three-quarters are owned by companies with at least 100 wells in their portfolios.
Then, there is the good business in improved efficiency. The larger idea in the regulation goes to avoiding waste, preventing leaks through timely inspections and maintenance, thus putting more of the product to its first purpose. In that way, the regulation pays a dividend, researchers concluding that the annual waste amounts to $700 million at 2019 prices, enough for the cooking and heating needs of more than 80% of residential consumers in Ohio.
Finally, a robust methane regulation enhances public health by curbing the associated toxic pollutants. That especially favors Summit County residents. TheEnvironmental Defense Fund reports that 54% of us live within a half-mile of an active smaller well, and virtually all live within one mile, one of the highest concentrations in the country.
So, the case for getting serious about methane emissions, including a ban on wasteful flaring and venting, is compelling.
For now, countries have been good about making pledges to reduce greenhouse gases under the 2015 Paris Agreement. A recent analysis concluded that if they kept their promises, warming would peak at 1.9 degrees Celsius, below the 2.0 threshold (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) that scientists warn would bring even more severe and disastrous results.
To arrive there will require action on many fronts, from convenient charging stations for electric cars to a transformed electricity grid. On Thursday, a misguided Supreme Court made the task much more challenging. A dramatic reduction in methane emissions is indispensable, and that means strong regulations for smaller wells.
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