Casten, Meijer Introduce Legislation to Mitigate Methane Emissions
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Congressmen Sean Casten (IL-06) and Peter Meijer (MI-03) introduced the Methane Emissions Mitigation Research and Development Act, which will reduce methane emissions, providing a unique opportunity to slow the pace of climate change, and give us more time to implement lasting changes to transition to a clean energy future.
“2021 saw the highest annual growth rate for methane emissions to date,” said Rep. Casten. “This problem is not slowing down and will only increase without action. The Methane Emissions Mitigation Research and Development Act supports innovative LDAR technologies that are needed to dramatically reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. We must ensure the Department of Energy has the necessary resources to produce the best possible methane reduction technologies.”
“The U.S. response to climate change should be research-based and targeted,” said Rep. Meijer. “The Methane Emissions Mitigation Research and Development Act focuses our best and brightest at the Department of Energy on methane emissions, one of the most potent greenhouse gasses. It also provides our local governments and private industries with the necessary tools to mitigate methane emissions and leaks. I am proud to join this bipartisan effort that takes an effective step towards combatting climate change.”
Methane is a short-lived pollutant with an atmospheric lifetime of approximately a decade, but accounts for nearly 30% of global warming since the Industrial Revolution. For the duration of its lifetime, methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, with a global warming potential that is 84-87 times greater than CO2 over a 20-year timeframe. Immediate action to reduce methane emissions would rapidly reduce overall warming.
The Methane Emissions Mitigation Research and Development Act directs DOE to coordinate a technical assistance program to work with state and local governments, as well as private industry to reduce methane emissions and protect public safety.
Furthermore, the Methane Emissions Mitigation Research and Development Act creates a Consortium at DOE focused on data sharing and researching cooperative leak detection and repair (LDAR) strategies and includes members representing industry, the federal government, and community organizations. This section of the bill comes directly from a recommendation in the Science, Space, and Technology Committee’s Majority Staff report on methane emissions, which was crafted over an 18-month examination into how federal research can reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector.
Full text of the bill can be found here.
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