The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said in a press release that in the coming days, it will propose changes to Biden-era energy regulations.
It did not release a specific proposal but said it would make adjustments to several aspects of the Biden-era rule, including the repeal of a program that would require energy companies to respond to credible reports of major methane leaks.
The EPA also said it would propose to change regulations for a group of low-producing, high-emitting wells known as “marginal” oil and gas wells.
The agency did not detail what regulatory changes it will suggest related to these wells and did not immediately respond to The Hill's request for more information.
ProPublica reported last month, citing a draft that was under White House review, that the rule would dramatically loosen requirements for leak inspections and equipment upgrades at marginal wells, which are estimated to produce just 7 percent of the nation’s oil and gas but about half of its methane emissions.
Meanwhile, the EPA said Wednesday it would “revisit” its approach to excess gas that’s extracted alongside oil after the Biden administration sought to eliminate the burning off of this gas — known as flaring — at new wells. The EPA did not say what changes it was eyeing but that it would seek to make “compliance possible all over the country and ensure a reasonable approach.”
The EPA said in a written statement that the moves could save an estimated $45 billion.
Read more at TheHill.com.
