** New Mexico, other groups want to reinstate methane limits
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Tuesday, December 22, 2020
Methane flaring, NOAA ([link removed])
New Mexico, California, and environmental groups are appealing to reinstate the Obama-era rule controlling methane emissions from oil and gas production on public land. In October, the 10th circuit court invalidated the 2016 rule that requires companies to reduce venting and flaring and prevent methane leaks. The rule would cut greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 175,000 and 180,000 tons each year, and protect the health of communities nearby.
In New Mexico, a recent analysis by the state emphasized the dire need to control methane emissions. New Mexico's Environmental Department found ([link removed]) that methane emission in the San Juan and Permian basins have increased by 250 percent compared to last year, a significant jump that threatens the health of nearby communities and contributes to climate change. “Ozone levels in the oil and gas regions of New Mexico are already threatening our most vulnerable population’s ability to breathe, like children and the elderly, as well as those dealing with complications from COVID-19,” said ([link removed]) James Kenney, Secretary of New Mexico's Environmental Department.
New Mexico has established an ambitious goal to limit methane emissions, proposing ([link removed]) a 98 percent gas capture rate by 2026. To meet this goal, the state will need the ability to regulate methane emissions on federal lands. The Environmental Department has been working on new rules, however, regulation on federal lands will be essential to meeting their goal. President-elect Joe Biden supports limits ([link removed]) on methane emissions and has indicated that he will sign an executive order instructing agencies to develop new methane limits for oil and gas wells.
Quick hits
** It could take years for Biden to restore wildlife protections erased by Trump
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Washington Post ([link removed])
** In confronting climate change, Biden won’t have a day to waste
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Washington Post ([link removed]) | Grist ([link removed])
** Climate change legislation included in coronavirus relief deal
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New York Times ([link removed]) | The Hill ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
** Biden's 30x30 plan could help close racial and socioeconomic disparities in access to nature
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Inside Climate News ([link removed])
** States, other groups urge court to reinstate methane rule
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Farmington Daily News ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
** Rep. Haaland's bills offer clues to how she might run Interior
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Opinion: Biden plans to conserve 30% of America's lands
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New York Times ([link removed])
** What’s next for the Utah monolith after its ‘return’ to federal land managers?
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
Quote of the day
Behind the catchy phrase is a simple, scientifically informed belief that conserving 30 percent of the planet’s land and 30 percent of its water is required to protect roughly 75 percent of Earth’s species and slow climate change by storing carbon in plants and soil.”
—Arthur Middleton and Justin Brashares, University of California, Berkeley, New York Times ([link removed])
Picture this
** @USFWSAlaska ([link removed])
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Snowshoe-like paws
tread quietly across the snow.
Excellent hunter.
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