CONGRESSMEN CALL FOR HEARINGS ON METHANE EMISSIONS

Karen Frantz
GHG Monitor
12/20/13

Two prominent members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are calling for hearings on the climate warming potential of methane emissions coming from the oil and gas sector. In a letter sent to leadership of the full committee and Energy and Power Subcommittee this week, Ranking Member Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) said that although carbon emissions have fallen in the United States due to the rising prominence of natural gas, emissions of methane—a potent greenhouse gas—from the sector might “negate the climate benefit of using more natural gas to generate electricity if these emissions are not adequately controlled.”

The letter says that methane, which ton-per-ton has a 100-year warming influence 28 times greater than carbon dioxide, can escape into the atmosphere at many points along the full life-cycle of natural gas. “Over the last several years, academics and industry groups have tried to measure and estimate the volume of methane leaked from natural gas systems in the United States. These estimates often have varied widely,” the letter says, and concludes that “The rate at which methane leaks into the atmosphere from natural gas production is a critical question that we must answer. Sound science must inform our policy-making as the nation increases its production of natural gas, uses more natural gas to generate electricity, and even begins to export natural gas to new markets.”

A spokesperson for the Committee said that it does not have plans for hearings at this time. Subcommittee Chair Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.)’s office did not respond to a request for comment by press time and a spokesperson with Committee Chair Fred Upton’s (R-Mich.) office could not be reached.