Washington, DC – Today the Obama Administration announced a series of steps to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the statement below regarding the announcement:
“The plan announced by the Administration today is an important step forward in reducing methane pollution, a potent greenhouse gas that harms public health and contributes to climate change, from its most significant industrial source – the oil and gas sector. I commend President Obama and his team for setting a target to reduce methane pollution by 40 to 45 percent, and for proposing to develop methane standards for new wells and wells on federal lands. While these are important first steps, we also need to pin down the full scope of the methane leakage problem and implement strong, enforceable standards throughout the oil and gas supply chain.”
Last year Whitehouse led a letter to President Obama urging him to establish national standards to reduce methane pollution.
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