Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** The Permian Basin has a major methane problem
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Wednesday, March 27, 2024
A flare and pumpjack in Eddy County, NM. Source: blake.thornberry/Flickr ([link removed])
As natural gas production in the Permian Basin grows, so does the amount of methane ([link removed]) wasted in the region.
Methane is a strong climate-warming pollutant and the main component of natural gas. It is also a byproduct of oil production, and there is insufficient infrastructure in the Permian ([link removed]) to move all of the methane produced there to market. This leads to operators lighting the gas on fire and flaring it off, as well as releasing it directly into the atmosphere, which is called venting.
The amount of natural gas produced in the basin has nearly tripled ([link removed]) since 2018, according to the Energy Information Administration. This has led to increased flaring and venting. The price for gas dipped below zero on March 13 ([link removed]) and was still negative as of March 21, exacerbating the amount of methane waste. On top of this increase in venting and flaring, a new study shows ([link removed]) oil and gas operations in the Permian are leaking around 9 percent of the gas produced there straight into the atmosphere.
Both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Bureau of Land Management are working on establishing rules to reduce methane waste. The EPA rule, as written, would require regular leak inspections ([link removed]) at well sites as well as eventually prohibit routine flaring ([link removed]) , while the BLM rule aims to reduce leaks, venting, and flaring ([link removed]) by establishing new royalty payments when natural gas is lost from wells on federal land.
** Quick hits
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Officials hope to speed signup in study of firefighting and cancer
Boise State Public Radio ([link removed])
Nevada is about to become a leading boron producer
Nevada Independent ([link removed])
Do mountains produce carbon or remove it from the atmosphere?
KUNR ([link removed])
Grizzly bear euthanized after killing cattle in Teton County
Billings Gazette ([link removed])
Colorado’s oil and gas industry filed a ballot proposal to ban oil and gas drilling
CPR News ([link removed])
GOP leaders, Arizona Chamber sue EPA over air quality standards
Arizona Republic ([link removed])
California is embracing beavers to help stop wildfires
Los Angeles Times ([link removed])
See a sky full of stars at these certified dark-sky parks
NPCA ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” Beavers belong in California, and they should be part of our fire management plan... They basically build up an ecosystem that’s resilient to fire through the vegetation mosaic, then keep it really well watered so it never dries out, never becomes easy to burn.”
—Emily Fairfax, assistant professor of geography at the University of Minnesota, Los Angeles Times ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@CanyonlandsNPS ([link removed])
Deadline extended! You still have time to share your thoughts about Canyonlands' future management of the Green and Colorado rivers. Public comments—now accepted through March 31—will help shape the upcoming draft plan. [link removed] ([link removed] extended! You still have time to share your thoughts about Canyonlands' future management of the Green and Colorado rivers. Public comments—now accepted through March 31—will help shape the upcoming draft plan. [link removed])
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