EPA Proposed Methane Rule Will Increase Energy Prices

​DENVER – Western Energy Alliance today submitted comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the proposed new and existing source methane rules. Certain provisions in the proposed rules would render significant oil and natural gas facilities in the United States, particularly marginal wells, uneconomic to operate, further constraining domestic supply, increasing energy prices, and making America more dependent on oil produced overseas,
 
“We support cost-effective regulation that incentivizes innovation, rewards positive performance, and provides regulatory certainty, but EPA’s proposed rules fail on all accounts. Several provisions in the rules would be impractical to implement, technically infeasible, provide no environmental benefit, and discourage the use of innovative technologies. The so-called super-emitter program, which would outsource EPA and state regulatory authority even to community groups that lack technical expertise, is flat out unlawful,” said Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Alliance. “By EPA’s own admission, the rules will reduce American oil and natural gas production, forcing the country to become more dependent on oil produced overseas.

"EPA rushed out these highly complex rules after the election and has refused to provide more time for the public to comment on hundreds of pages of regulatory language and hundreds more of supporting documentation. Buried deep in the rulemaking is a draft report which increases the Social Cost of Carbon (SCC) by 360%. The value of the SCC is a major policy issue that affects every industrial sector and society as a whole. It should not be buried deep in technical supporting documentation for a rulemaking targeted at just one industry. The calculations are highly flawed and require much greater public scrutiny before EPA can use them to justify this costly rule and drive regulatory policy,” concluded Sgamma.
 
For more information, please see the Alliance’s letter to EPA. 

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