Supreme Court clears way for Biden’s methane-control plan
The Supreme Court on Oct. 4 declined to block the Biden administration’s methane rule, settling the legality of the regulations opposed by oil and gas companies.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s methane rule requires companies to curb methane emissions from oil and gas production and storage and many processing and pipeline operations (OGJ Online, Dec. 4, 2023).
EPA says the rule would slash methane emissions by 80% between 2024 and 2038 by minimizing the size and frequency of gas leaks. The regulations also target the routine flaring of natural gas.
The high court issued an emergency docket that decided two of three lawsuits brought by several Republican-led states, power plants, and the oil and gas industry that challenged Biden’s rules forcing energy companies to cut emissions to address climate change and reduce pollution.
In addition to the methane regulations, the Supreme Court upheld EPA’s mercury rule that directs fossil-fuel-fired power plants to reduce emissions of mercury and other toxic substances.
The court did not act on an emergency request to block another EPA regulation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal and gas-fired power plants. Those regulations would require all coal-fired power plants that operate past 2039 and new natural gas-fired power plants to reduce carbon emissions by 90%.
While the mercury rule focuses on wells and compressor stations, it also targets crude oil gathering lines and natural gas production, processing, transmission and storage, up to the point of transfer to a local distribution company.
When EPA proposed the rule, industry associations argued that some of the regulation’s elements were either impractical or overly expensive (OGJ Online, Feb. 14, 2023).
Between Editors: Methane Emissions in Oil and Gas (Part I)
The Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast launched late September with an episode on methane emissions. In this first part of a two-part series, Alex Procyk, Upstream Editor, and Robert Brelsford, Downstream Editor, discuss methane emissions, the new EPA methane emission rules, and their impact on operators of US oil and gas fields and infrastructure. Download and listen in! and staty tuned for the second part to drop Oct. 8.
Cathy Landry | Washington Correspondent
Cathy Landry has worked over 20 years as a journalist, including 17 years as an energy reporter with Platts News Service (now S&P Global) in Washington and London.
She has served as a wire-service reporter, general news and sports reporter for local newspapers and a feature writer for association and company publications.
Cathy has deep public policy experience, having worked 15 years in Washington energy circles.
She earned a master’s degree in government from The Johns Hopkins University and studied newspaper journalism and psychology at Syracuse University.