Regulating Methane Emissions from Oil and Dairy Industries US Legislative Timeline for Emission Controls
On March 28, 2014, the Obama administration proposed new measures to reduce methane emissions, focusing on landfills, coal mines, dairy farming, and oil and gas systems, as part of its climate action plan announced in June of the previous year.
Methane is a major component of natural gas and a greenhouse gas with a warming potential 21 times greater than carbon dioxide. Its emissions account for nearly 9% of total man-made greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Since 1990, although methane-producing activities in the United States have increased, methane pollution has decreased by 11%.
Reducing methane emissions and pollution is a crucial action to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Without action to reduce methane emissions, methane pollution is projected to increase to the equivalent of 620 million tons of carbon dioxide pollution by 2030.
The Obama administration’s new strategy promises to reduce methane emissions, demonstrating the U.S. government’s efforts to improve greenhouse gas emission standards, which the White House calls “a cost-effective voluntary action; based on common-sense criteria.”
In the summer of 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will propose new standards to reduce methane emissions from new landfills and will solicit public opinion on whether to adopt the new standards for existing landfills at the same time.
In April 2014, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will enter into legislation to regulate the capture, sale, or disposal of waste methane on federal leased land.
In June 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy, and the Environmental Protection Agency will collaborate with dairy farmers to publish a "Biogas Blueprint," outlining a series of voluntary measures to accelerate the adoption of anaerobic digestion and other cost-effective technologies, with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. dairy industry by 30% by 2020.
Regarding risk assessment methods for priority chemical substances, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Ministry of the Environment had already reviewed the matter at a joint review meeting in 2011, and a draft for soliciting opinions was released on September 26, 2011. The appendix, "Basic Ideas for Risk Assessment of Priority Chemical Substances under the Chemical Substances Approval Law," mentioned technical guidelines. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's annual work plan, NITE was designated to undertake the drafting of the relevant technical guidelines.
This spring, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) will assess methane and other gas emissions from the oil and gas industry, soliciting opinions from independent experts through a technical white paper. The EPA plans to identify the best way to reduce methane emissions by autumn. If the EPA decides to develop new regulations, they will be finalized by the end of 2016.
In addition, there are three actions related to the oil and gas industry. This year, the BLM will propose new standards to reduce emissions and combustion from oil and gas production on public land.
The Obama administration will convene a roundtable discussion through the Department of Energy to explore downstream methane reduction opportunities as part of its four-year energy review report. Through the Natural Gas Star program, the Environmental Protection Agency will collaborate with industry to develop voluntary actions that can reduce methane emissions.
Sources: Environmental Information Center (2014-03-28)
