American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2016 - 31

Methane Policy

Initiative Aimed At Stopping Oil & Gas
WASHINGTON-The United States
and Canada have announced another
initiative to limit methane emissions
that oil and gas industry groups contend
is more about halting oil and gas development than protecting the environment.
On March 17, U.S. President Barack
Obama and Canadian Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau released a joint statement
on climate, energy and Arctic leadership,
in which they signal their intent to expand
proposed regulations to limit methane
emissions from new or modified oil and
gas facilities, and on federal lands, to existing oil and gas facilities.
"The plan concocted by President
Obama and PM Trudeau isn't about
methane emissions," responded Thomas
Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy
Research. "This is about increasing the
cost of producing natural gas and oil."
Independent Petroleum Association
of America Executive Vice President Lee
Fuller agrees, saying, "It's clear this administration is kowtowing to environmental extremists whose only wish is to
keep our nation's affordable and abundant
energy supplies . . . in the ground."
Achieve Climate Goals
The joint statement commits both the
United States and Canada to reducing
oil and gas sector methane emissions by
40-45 percent by 2025, as well as taking
action in order to "achieve our respective
international climate change commit-

ments."
The statement says, "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will begin
developing regulations for methane emissions from existing oil and gas sources
immediately. Next month, EPA will start
a formal process to require companies
operating existing methane emission
sources to provide information to assist
in developing comprehensive standards
to decrease methane emissions."
In addition, the statement contains a
joint U.S.-Canada endorsement for the
World Bank's Zero Routine Flaring by 2030
Initiative; pledges cooperation on clean
energy to "facilitate integrating renewables
on our interconnected grids" by jointly
studying, identifying and implementing options to bring on line more wind, solar,
hydro and other renewable energy; and announces a shared Arctic leadership model.
Obama and Trudeau call "on all Arctic
nations and those with Arctic interests to
embrace a new future for Arctic leadership
with four objectives:"
* Conserve Arctic biodiversity through
science-based decision making;
* Incorporate indigenous science and
traditional knowledge into decision making;
* Build a sustainable Arctic economy,
which includes allowing commercial activities "only when the highest safety
and environmental standards are met, including national and global climate and
environmental goals; and
* Supporting strong Arctic commu-

nities.
A statement from Greenpeace titled,
"Trudeau-Obama Climate Announcement
Sets Stage for End to Arctic Drilling,"
quotes USA Executive Director Annie
Leonard saying, "President Obama and
PM Trudeau may not have mentioned oil
companies, but their message should put
those companies' Arctic plans on ice."
Request For Information
According to published accounts of
press briefings that followed the announcement, EPA Director Gina McCarthy said
her agency would start collecting information
in April as a first step toward crafting a
rule for existing oil and gas facilities.
She said EPA's information collection
request (ICR) would allow it to "gather
important information on existing sources
of emissions, technologies to reduce those
emissions, and the costs of those technologies in the production, gathering,
processing, and transmission and storage
segments," reports indicate. "Through
the ICR, EPA will be seeking . . . information such as how equipment and emission controls are, or can be, configured,
and what installing those controls entails."
Interior Secretary Salley Jewel is quoted
saying, "Adherence to national and global
climate goals should be a key consideration
in deciding whether (Arctic oil and gas
development) should move forward."
In a note to clients, ClearView Energy
Partners LLC speculates that "an existing

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American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2016

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