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For Immediate Release January 14, 2015 The White House Office of the Press Secretary


# FACT SHEET: Administration Takes Steps Forward on Climate Action Plan SHARE THIS:



### ¬ ­ the WHITE HOUSE PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA



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# by Announcing Actions to Cut Methane Emissions

The Obama Administration is committed to taking responsibl e steps to address climate change and help ensure a cleaner, more stable environment for future generations. As part of that effort, today, the Admi nistration is announcing a new goal to cut methane emissions from the oil and ga s sector by 40 – 45 percent from 2012 levels by 2025, and a set of actions to put the U.S. on a path to achieve this ambitious goal. U.S. oil producti on is at the highest level in near ly 30 years, prov iding important energy security and economic benefits. The U. S. is also now the largest natural gas producer in the world, providing an abundant source of clean-burning fuel to power and heat American hom es and businesses. Continuing to rely on these domestic energy resources is a critical element of the Pr esident’s energy strategy. At the same time, me thane – the primary co mponent of natural gas – is a potent greenhouse gas, with 25 times t he heat-trapping potential of carbon dioxide over a 100-year period.
Methane emissions account ed for nearly 10 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2012, of which nearly 30 percent ca me from the production transmission and distribution of oil and natural gas. Emissi ons from the oil and gas sector are down 16 perc ent since 1990 and current data show significant reductions from certain pa rts of the sector, not ably well completions. Nevertheless, emissions from the oil and gas sector are projected to rise more than 25 percent by 2025 without additional steps to lower them. For these reasons, a strategy for cutt ing methane emissions from th e oil and gas sector is an important componentof efforts to ad dress climate change. The steps announced today are also a sound economic and p ublic health strategy because reducing methane em issions means ca pturing valuable fuel that is otherwise wasted and reducing other harmful pollutants – a win for public health and the economy. Achiev ing the Administration’s goal wo uld save up to 180 billion cubic feet of natural gas in 2025, enough to heat more than 2 million homes for a year and continue to support businesses that manufacture and sell cost-effective technologies to identif y, quantify, and reduc e methane emissions. â

12 /7 /201 5ADMINISTRATION AC TIONS TO REDUCE METHANE EMISSIONS Building on prior actions by the Administ ration, and leadership in states and industry, today the Administ ration is announcing a seri es of steps encompassing both commonsense standards and cooperative engagement with states, tribes and industry to put us on a path toward the 2025 goal. This coordinated, crossagency effort will ensure a ha rmonized approach that also consi ders the important role of FERC, state util ity commissions and environment al agencies, and industry. Administration actions include: Propose and Set Commonsense Standards for Methane and Ozone-Forming Emissions from New and Modified Sources In 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) laid a foundation for further action when it issued standards for volatile organic co mpounds (VOC) from the oil and natural gas industry. These standards , when fully implemen ted, are expected to reduce 190,000 to 290,000 to ns of VOC and decrease me thane emissions in an amount equivalent to 33 million tons of carbon pollution per year. The standards not only relied on technologies and practice s already in widespr ead use in the oil and gas sector, but also incor porated innovative regulatoryflexibility. Along with a rule to streamline permitting of oil and gas production on ce rtain tribal lands, this approach ensured that import ant public heal th and environmental protections could be achieved while oi l and gas production contin ued to grow and expand. Building on five technical white papers issued last spri ng, the peer review and public input received on these documents, and the actions that a number of states are already taking, EPA will initiate a rulemaking effo rt to set standards for methane and VOC emission s from new and modified oil and gas production sources, and natural gas processing and tr ansmission sources. EPA will issue a proposed rule in the summer of 2015 and a fi nal rule will follow in 2016. In developing these standards , EPA will work with indust ry, states, tribes, and other stakeholders to consider a range of common-sense appr oaches that can reduce emissions from the sources discussed in the agency’s Oil and Gas White Papers, including oil well completion s, pneumatic pumps, and l eaks from well sites, gathering and boosting stations , and compressor stations. As it did in the 2012 standards, the agency, in dev eloping the propo sal and final standards, will focus on in-use technologies, current industrypractices, emergi ng innovations and streamlined and flexible regulatory approaches to ensure that emissions

12 /7 /201 5reductions can be achieved as oil and gas production and operati ons continue to grow.
New Guidelines to Reduce Vo latile Organic Compounds EPA will develop new guidelines to assist states in reducing ozone-forming pollutants from existing oil and gas systems in areas th at do not meet the ozone health standard and in states in the Ozone Transport Region. These guidelines will also reduce methane emi ssions in these areas. The gu idelines will help states that are developing clean air ozone plans by providing a ready-to-adopt control measure that they can include in those plans. Consider Enhancing Leak Detection and Emissions Reporting
EPA will continue to promote transparency and accountabi lity for existing sources by strengthening its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program to require reporting in all segments of the industry. In addition to finalizing the updates to the program EPA has already proposed by the end of 2015, EPA will explore potential regulatory opportunities for applying remo te sensing technologies and other innovations in measurement and monitoring technology to further improv e the identification and quantification of emissions and improve the overall accu racy and transparency of reported data cost -effectively. Lead by Example on Public Lands The Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will update decades-old standards to reduc e wasteful venting, flari ng, and leaks of natural gas, which is primarily met hane, from oil and gas wells. These standards, to be proposed this spring, will address both new and exis ting oil and gas wells on public lands. This action will enhance our energy securityand economy by boosting America’s natural gas supplies, ensuring th at taxpayers receive the royalties due to them from development of public resource s, and reducing emissions. BLM will workclosely with EPA to ensu re an integrated approach.
Reduce Methane Emissions while Improving Pipeline Safety The Department of Transportation’s Pi peline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) will propose natural gas pipeline safe ty standards in 2015. While the stan dards will focus on safety, they are expected to lower methane emissions as well.

12 /7 /201 5Drive Technology to Reduce Natura l Gas Losses and Improve Emissions Quantification The President’s FY16 Budge t will propose $15 million in funding for the Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and demonstrate more cost-effective technologies to detect and reduce losses from natural gas transmission and distribution systems. This will include efforts to re pair leaks and develop next generation compressors. The President’s b udget will also propose $10 million to launch a program at DOE to enhance the quantification of emissions from natural gas infrastructure for inclusion in the national Greenhouse Gas Inventory in coordination with EPA.
Modernize Natural Gas Transmission and Distribution Infrastructure
DOE will continue to take steps to encourage reduced emissi ons, particularly from natural gas transmission and distribution, including:
• Issuing energy efficiency standards for natural gas and air compressors; • Advancing research and devel opment to bring down the cost of detecting leaks; • Working with FERC to modernize natural gas infrastructure; and • Partnering with NARUC and local distribution companies to accelerate pipeline repair and replacement at the local level.

Release a Quadrennial Energy Review (QER)
The Administration will soon release the first instal lment of the QER, which focuses specifically on pol icy actions that are needed to help modernize energy transmission, storage, and distri bution infrastructure. This installment of the QER will include additional po licy recommendations and ana lysis on the environmental, safety, and economic benefit s of investments that re duce natural gas system leakage.
INDUSTRY ACTIONS TO RE DUCE METHANE EMISSIONS. The Administration’s actions represent im portant steps to cu t methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. Fully attaining the Administra tion’s goal will require additional action, particula rly with respect to exis ting sources of methane emissions. Several voluntary industry efforts to address these sources are underway, including E PA’s plans to expand on the su ccessful Natural Gas STAR

12 /7 /201 5Program by launching a new partnership in collaboratio n with key stakeholders later in 2015. EP A will work with DOE, DOT, and leading companies, individually and through broader init iatives such as the One Fu ture Initiative and the Downstream Initiative, to develop and verifyrobust commitme nts to reduce methane emissions. This new effort will encourage innovation, provide accountability and transparency, and tra ck progress toward specific methane emission reduction activities and goals to reduce methane leakage across the natural gas value chain. Voluntary efforts to reduce emissions in a comprehensiv e and transparent manner hold the potential to realize si gnificant reductions in a qui ck, flexible, cost-effective way. Achieving signi ficant methane reductions from these voluntary industry programs and state actions could reduce the need for future regulations. The Administration stands ready to collaborate with these and other voluntary efforts, including in the developmentof a regime for moni toring, reporting and verification.
BUILDING ON PROGRESS Today’s announcement builds on the “Strategy to Redu ce Methane Emissions” released in March 2014. Si nce its release, the Admini stration has taken a number of actions to set us on a course to re duce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector and other sources:

• DOE has launched a new initiative that wi ll make up to $30 million available to

develop low-cost highly sensitive te chnologies that c an help detect and measure methane emissions from oil and gas systems. Just last month, DOE announced the 11 innovative projects selected. • DOE convened a series of roundtable di scussions with leaders from industry, environmental organizatio ns, state regulators, co nsumer groups, academia, labor unions, and other stak eholders. The meetings culminated in July 2014, with the creation of an Initiative to Modernize Na tural Gas Transmission and Distribution Infrastructurethat laid out a series of executive actions, partnerships, and stakeholder commitm ents to help moderni ze the nation’s natural gas transmission a nd distribution systems, increase safety and energy efficiency and reduce methane emissions. • The US Department of Agri culture (USDA), EPAand DOE, in partnership with

the dairy industry, released a Biogas Opportunities Roadmapin August 2014

12 /7 /201 5highlighting voluntary acti ons to reduce methane emis sions through the use of biodigesters. • BLM released an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) in April

2014 to gather public input on the devel opment of a program for the capture and sale, or disposal, of waste methane from coal mines on public lands. • EPA proposed updates to its 1996 New Source Performance Standards for new municipal solid wast e landfills and so ught public feedba ck on whether EPA should update guidelines for existing land fills in June 2 014, which they anticipate finali zing this year.

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