US Proposals to Cut Methane and Other Pollutants

As an extension of his Climate Action Plan President Obama through the EPA has announced a series of proposals that will reduce methane and other harmful emissions. While there are there are already some voluntary programs to reduce methane emissions, the EPA has proposed new regulations that will significantly reduce methane in the oil and gas sector as well as in landfills.

In June of this year the EPA announced that it was preparing plans to limit methane. On August 18, 2015, the EPA publishes more details of the new rules. The standards are intended for the oil and gas sector. They are designed to reduce methane, VOCs and other toxic air pollutants. Under the proposed regulations the oil and gas industry would have to cut methane emission by 40 to 45 percent from 2012 levels by 2025.

Video - Methane is a Potent Greenhouse Gas

Methane is one of the most destructive global warming causing greenhouse gases. By some estimates it is 34 times more harmful to our climate than carbon dioxide. The explosion in Harlem last week is a tragic reminder of just how common it is for natural gas (methane) to leak from pipelines. Methane seeps from wells while it is being extracted. It also leaks from the sea floor due to global warming which is causing ice and permafrost to melt in the Arctic.