The proposed rule would limit how much gas can be flared from drilling sites if oil companies don't install pipes to carry the methane to market.

Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** BLM cracks down on methane waste—again
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Tuesday, November 29, 2022
Flaring in North Park, Colorado. Photo: WildEarth Guardians ([link removed]) , CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 ([link removed])

The Biden administration announced a new set of rules aimed to reduce venting and flaring of methane ([link removed]) on public lands. The proposed rule ([link removed]) would limit how much gas can be flared from drilling sites if oil companies don't install pipes to carry the methane to market. It also requires companies to create leak detection and repair plans for their oil wells.

The agency estimates that between 2010 and 2020, venting and flaring from federal and Tribal lands released enough methane to heat 675,000 homes a year ([link removed]) .

The rulemaking also aims to end a back-and-forth that has been playing out in the courts for six years ([link removed]) , since the Obama administration issued a similar rule in 2016. That rule survived an attempt by Congress to repeal it using the Congressional Review Act ([link removed]) but was largely eviscerated by a Trump administration rule in 2018. Both the Obama and Trump rules were thrown out by different federal courts in 2020, leaving outdated regulations from 1979 in place.

“It’s encouraging to see the Biden administration take steps to end the legal hot potato over methane venting and flaring,” said CWP Deputy Director Aaron Weiss ([link removed]) . “There’s no reason for oil and gas companies to waste a publicly-owned resource, much less a powerful greenhouse gas like methane. This rule will provide the industry with the regulatory certainty it seeks while protecting taxpayers and the environment.”
Quick hits


** BLM considers upgrades to Gold Butte National Monument, but Cliven Bundy's cows still graze there
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Las Vegas Review-Journal ([link removed])


** How the Inflation Reduction Act will change oil and gas production in Montana and Utah
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Billings Gazette ([link removed]) | Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])


** Mounting scientific evidence rekindles fracking health concerns
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Mother Jones ([link removed])


** House has little appetite for Manchin permitting bill in lame-duck session
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Colorado Newsline ([link removed])


** Montana judge to decide on wolf hunting limits
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Associated Press ([link removed])


** Isolated Havasupai Tribe gets $7 million Interior Dept. grant for broadband internet
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Arizona Republic ([link removed])


** Grand Canyon campground with offensive name now ‘Havasupai Gardens’
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National Parks Traveler ([link removed]) | The Hill ([link removed]) | Arizona Republic ([link removed])


** Editorial: BLM connectivity policy is good for users and wildlife
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Grand Junction Daily Sentinel ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” The eviction of Havasupai residents from Ha’a Gyoh coupled with the offensive name, Indian Garden, has had detrimental and lasting impacts on the Havasupai families that lived there and their descendants. Every year, approximately 100,000 people visit the area while hiking the Bright Angel Trail, largely unaware of this history. The renaming of this sacred place to Havasupai Gardens will finally right that wrong.”
—Havasupai Tribe Chairman Thomas Siyuja, Sr., National Parks Traveler ([link removed])
Picture this


** @nationalparkservice ([link removed])
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The world’s largest active volcano, Mauna Loa on Hawaii, is erupting for the first time in nearly 40 years. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park remains open following the eruption that began in the summit caldera late Sunday night, and migrated to the northeast rift zone Monday morning. The eruption is expected to draw an influx of visitors to the park who hope to see a rare dual eruption from both Kīlauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes. @usgs ([link removed]) Photos from Civil Air Patrol fight. @hawaiivolcanoesnps ([link removed])

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