Washington, D.C. — Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper sent a letter to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan urging the incorporation of methane emissions data from advanced measurement technologies and “top-down” data, helping provide a more comprehensive and accurate picture as the agency works to modernize methane reporting under its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) to help combat climate change.
“As EPA modernizes methane reporting under its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), we urge the agency to incorporate further use of top-down data and data from advanced measurement technologies, and to expeditiously finalize this rule,” wrote Bennet and Hickenlooper. “The State of Colorado, which has led the nation on rules to limit methane from oil and gas operations, is undertaking similar efforts.”
Methane is a climate pollutant many times more potent than carbon dioxide, especially in the near-term. Human-caused methane emissions are responsible for at least 25 percent of the climate warming we are experiencing today. Colorado is a national leader when it comes to measuring and limiting methane from oil and gas systems – it was the first state to adopt common-sense rules for methane pollution for new and existing oil and gas facilities.
“Methods currently in development to incorporate top-down data at the regional and site level promise to provide more accurate total emission estimates,” wrote the senators. “Incorporating top-down data should not be limited to the detection and quantification of high-emitting point sources.”
Bennet has consistently worked to cut methane emissions and strengthen federal oil and gas methane rules, modeled on Colorado’s. In 2021, Bennet led members of the Colorado congressional delegation to push the EPA for stronger methane regulations for the oil and gas sector. In February, he joined Senate colleagues to urge the EPA to use data from innovative monitoring technologies like satellite imaging, and tighten restrictions on routine flaring to strengthen methane emission standards. Earlier that month, Bennet led a letter urging the Bureau of Land Management to follow Colorado’s lead by eliminating routine venting and flaring from oil and gas operations on public and Tribal lands.
In addition, Bennet’s Oil and Gas Bonding Reform and Orphaned Well Remediation Act would provide funding to clean up abandoned, or orphaned, oil and gas wells that leak powerful methane emissions, while strengthening bonding requirements on public lands, ensuring that oil and gas companies— not taxpayers — pay for the cost of cleanup. In October, the senators also wrote to DOI and BLM in support of proposed rules updating oil and gas bonding requirements.
The text of the letter is available HERE and below.
Dear Administrator Regan:
We write in support of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ongoing efforts to cut harmful methane pollution from the oil and gas sector. The agency’s actions will support cost-effective and common-sense methane reductions, which will help protect people and the climate while advancing energy security and avoiding waste.
As EPA modernizes methane reporting under its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), we urge the agency to incorporate further use of top-down data and data from advanced measurement technologies, and to expeditiously finalize this rule. The State of Colorado, which has led the nation on rules to limit methane from oil and gas operations, is undertaking similar efforts.
Source-level data has been found to systematically underreport total emissions across the oil and gas supply chain. While EPA’s proposed empirically-based calculation methodologies for individual sources will improve the quality of emission estimates for those sources, methods currently in development to incorporate top-down data at the regional and site level promise to provide more accurate total emission estimates. Incorporating top-down data should not be limited to the detection and quantification of high-emitting point sources.
As emissions change over time, empirically-based, accurate reporting can ensure these changes are reflected in subpart W reporting. EPA’s proposed rule incorporates both required and optional measurement methods for many sources, which will produce more empirically-based data. However, EPA should continue to assess the strength of its reporting requirements by incorporating top-down data collected through satellite, aerial, tower measurements, and other observational methods that ensure completeness across all sources of emissions.
Once the improvements in the subpart W proposal have been implemented, EPA should compare the reported emissions to the top-down measurements and use that assessment’s results to guide future improvements to subpart W reporting. Top-down data at the regional level and site level can also be used to accurately estimate annual emissions for populations of sites, ensuring emissions from all sources are captured in totals.
We commend EPA for its efforts to drive down methane pollution. As EPA works to finalize methane reporting requirements under the GHGRP, we urge EPA to harness advanced technology capabilities, and to continue coordinating across regulatory programs and with the State of Colorado as it pursues similar efforts.
We look forward to hearing from you on this important matter.