WORC teamed with 14 national, regional, tribal and local public health and environmental groups representing millions of Americans to take legal steps to defend new standards that reduce natural gas waste on public and tribal lands, protect public health, and guard against damage to the climate.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) standards, finalized in November, limit the amount of natural gas that oil and gas companies can leak, vent, or flare on the hundreds of millions of acres of federal and tribal lands in the U.S. — a problem that not only costs industry money in waste but costs taxpayers millions of dollars and results in harmful air pollution.
Two oil and gas industry groups challenged the rule within 40 minutes of its release. The states of Montana, Wyoming,and North Dakota have also challenged the rule.
The health and environmental groups filed a motion December 2 with the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming seeking to enter the case on the side of BLM and defend the standards.
“Lessees wasted over 462 billion cubic feet (“bcf”) of natural gas on public and tribal lands between 2009 and 2015 — enough gas to serve about 6.2 million households for a year … As a result of this waste, States, Tribes and federal taxpayers are losing millions of dollars annually in royalty revenue that could be used to fund schools, health care, and infrastructure,” the groups said in their motion.
Technology can curb natural gas waste
The standards require companies to use low-cost, readily-available technologies to capture methane. Many industry leaders and several western states already use these technologies to reduce pollution and natural gas waste.
“Because wasted natural gas is comprised largely of methane — a powerful greenhouse gas — the Rule will also help to reduce the significant climate impacts of oil and gas development on federal and Indian leases … Additionally, the Rule will benefit communities suffering the impacts of such development by reducing emissions of smog-forming compounds and carcinogens, like benzene … BLM estimates that the Rule could have net benefits of up to $204 million per year,” the groups said.
Participating Groups
In addition to WORC, the groups petitioning to intervene in the case are
- Wyoming Outdoor Council,
- Center for Biological Diversity,
- Citizens for a Healthy Community,
- Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment,
- Environmental Defense Fund,
- Environmental Law & Policy Center,
- Montana Environmental Information Center,
- National Wildlife Federation,
- Natural Resources Defense Council,
- San Juan Citizens Alliance,
- Sierra Club,
- The Wilderness Society,
- Wilderness Workshop, and
- WildEarth Guardians.
Several of these parties are represented by counsel from Clean Air Task Force, Earthjustice, and the Western Environmental Law Center.
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