EPA has a proposed rule to reduce methane leaks and capture wasted gas instead of flaring it. It is a good rule and will protect health from both air pollution and climate change. We encourage everyone to submit your own comment on this proposed rule at Regulations .gov! Please ask EPA to finalize this rule quickly to protect health and save lives.
We have collaborated with our friends in the Breathe Again Collaborative to make a 1 page information sheet about health, climate, and methane. Here is the link. Included in the 1 page information sheet is another link where you can send an email comment to EPA, if you aren’t able to write your own for the Regulations .gov online comment site.
Here are some links to previous posts about methane and health on our website:
- (2023) Methane is a strong greenhouse gas and also creates health problems as it leaks. EPA’s rule is good and necessary to protect health. (This is Dr. Anne’s testimony at the EPA public hearing on this methane rule.)
- (2022) EPA’s proposed methane rule is good for climate and health.
- (2022) Methane measurements set ANOTHER new record in 2021. (Note- we don’t have 2022 measurements yet, so these are the most recent ones.)
- (2022) Fracking wells that make methane are linked to doubling the rate of leukemia in children who live nearby.
- (2021) Why a methane rule is good for our health. (This is Dr. Anne’s comments at an EPA listening session when they were first considering this proposed rule.)
- (2020) Methane leaks are undercounted. This proposed EPA rule requires strict monitoring, counting, and fixing leaks. While we are installing new clean energy, we need to make sure we don’t release unneeded methane straight into the air, which is a waste and a health hazard.
Also in 2022, The Hill published a joint opinion piece, To Protect Health, EPA Must Regulate Methane Emissions, by Dr. Anne and Deborah Brown, Chief Mission Officer at the American Lung Association.
Methane is a strong greenhouse gas. Other air pollution leaks with methane, so reducing methane leaks will improve health for communities that are near wells, pipelines, and compressor stations.
01/27/2023
