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1 1 (September 5, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govemsv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Con gressionol Research Service Informing the IegisIative debate since 1914 Updated September 5, 2023 The Legal Framework for Federal Methane Regulation Methane is a greenhouse gas with 25 times the warming capacity of carbon dioxide. Methane makes up about 11% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Primary sources of methane include oil and gas production, transportation and storage (methane is the main component of natural gas), landfill gases, coal mines, and agricultural practices. Methane emissions are primarily regulated under the Clean Air Act (CAA) but may also be regulated pursuant to other statutory authorities. This In Focus summarizes existing federal authority to regulate methane emitted from all sources except agricultural sources. Methane emitted by agricultural sources is addressed primarily through voluntary programs and is thus outside the scope of this In Focus. Clean Air Act Section 111 of the CAA (42 U.S.C. § 7411) directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate emissions from certain categories of stationary sources that emit any pollutant that EPA has determined causes, or contributes significantly to, air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare. EPA has identified methane as an air pollutant, and it has listed oil and gas production, transportation and storage facilities, and municipal solid waste landfills as source categories that emit methane. Once EPA identifies a source category as contributing to pollution that may endanger public health and welfare, Section 111 requires EPA to develop New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) to regulate emissions from newly constructed, modified, or reconstructed sources in that source category. Section 111 also requires EPA to develop emissions guidelines for pollutants from existing sources in categories for which EPA develops NSPS so long as the pollutant to be regulated is not already regulated pursuant to another provision of the CAA. NSPS and emissions guidelines represent the level of emissions reduction achievable by the application of the best system of emission reduction (BSER) as determined by EPA. Sources may achieve emissions reductions any way they see fit so long as emissions reductions are equal to the reductions achievable by the BSER identified by EPA. Where individual states have EPA-approved State Implementation Plans (SIPs), states implement NSPS. Otherwise, implementation of NSPS falls to EPA. Individual states implement emissions guidelines through SIPs that must be approved by EPA. In the event a state does not submit an emissions guideline SIP, EPA must develop one for the state. Performance standards and emissions guidelines are then included in an individual source's CAA permit. Oil and Gas Industry Methane Regulations Under the CAA Gas and oil production, transportation, and storage account for about 32% of methane emissions in the United States. On November 15, 2021, EPA released a proposed rule that would establish NSPS and emissions guidelines for the oil and gas source category for methane emissions. 86 Fed. Reg. 63,110. On November 22, 2022, EPA released a supplemental proposed rule. If EPA promulgates the proposed rule without changes, it would regulate methane in two significant ways. First, it would require most onshore oil and gas production facilities to stop venting and flaring methane-that is, releasing or burning methane as a waste byproduct of the production process. Facilities would be required to capture the methane and either route it to a pipeline that would deliver the gas for commercial use or use it onsite as a fuel source. If neither option were available, the rule would permit continued flaring of methane but would require a 95% emissions reduction and additional monitoring and reporting requirements. Second, the rule would impose expanded methane leak detection standards on oil and gas production equipment and compressor stations by expanding the number of components checked for leaks and increasing the frequency of monitoring. The supplemental proposal includes a matrix for periodic and continuous emissions screening with varying detection thresholds and monitoring frequencies. Higher detection thresholds require more frequent monitoring. The supplemental proposal also includes a Super-Emitter Response Program for emissions of 100kg/hr or greater. If such an event is detected, the owner or operator would be required to identify the cause of the leak within five days and plug the leak within ten days. The proposed rule would also promulgate emissions guidelines for existing sources that largely track the limitations in the NSPS for new sources. Municpal Solid Waste LandfiH Methane Regulations Under the CAA Landfills account for approximately 17% of methane emissions in the United States. EPA promulgated a new NSPS for municipal solid waste landfills in 2016. 81 Fed. Reg. 59,276. The 2016 rule amended an earlier NSPS issued in 1996. The 2016 rule applies to landfills built, modified, or reconstructed after July 17, 2014, with a design capacity of at least 2.5 million metric tons.

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