On July 31, several groups including community groups, environmental and health groups filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. federal government’s decision to postpone the implementation of standards controlling methane pollution within the oil and gas industry. These standards have been in force for about a year, but the current administration, through the EPA, passed a new rule putting on hold the enforcement of these standards for another 18 months.
Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the EPA, made the decision to delay the requirements for firms to adhere to the 2024 standards on methane control. The delay could last up to a year and a half. The delay comes notwithstanding the fact that the standards have been in force for at least one year, and the petitioners are riled that the EPA passed the rule delaying those standards without providing an opportunity for public comment as is required by law.
The new rule of the EPA was published yesterday, and the different groups opposed to this new rule immediately went to court. The petitioners include Earthjustice, Food and Water Watch, GreenLatinos, NRDC, Dakota Resource Council, Sierra Club, and several others. Their lawsuit was filed at the D.C Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals.
Methane is the main component in natural gas and it is a pollutant that has been found to be at least 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in terms of its planet-warming potential. It accounts for 33% of the global warming so far documented, triggering climate change and the resultant adverse effects like the worsening of flooding, heatwaves, wildfires as well as other adverse events putting lives and livelihoods at risk in the U.S. and around the globe.
The factsheet availed by the EPA points out that the delay in enforcing the standards would result in more pollution. For example, the factsheet notes that between 2028 and 2038, the interim rule they published would result in nearly a million tons of VOCs (volatile organic compounds) not being reduced as would have happened if the standards were enforced. The figures are even higher for methane and other toxic pollutants of the air.
The standards whose implementation has been halted prevented pollution through a number of easy-to-implement measures, such as detecting leaks of methane and undertaking repairs to stop those leaks. Oil and gas industry players now appear to have been given a pass to neglect those basic pollution control measures while conducting their exploration and extraction operations.
It remains to be seen whether the courts will uphold this interim rule or concur with the petitioners regarding the necessity of the 2024 standards and adherence to due process when passing interim rules of this nature.
For firms like GEMXX Corp. (OTC: GEMZ) conducting their oil and gas exploration activities in Latin America, the storm in the U.S. regarding the new interim rule published by the EPA will be of interest as it highlights the conflicts between operators in oil and gas on one hand and those who don’t want to see environmental harms arise from those business activities.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to GEMXX Corp. (OTC: GEMZ) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/GEMZ
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