On April 15, 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released five technical white papers for peer review, each one focusing on a possible source of methane and volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions within the oil and natural gas sector. The papers describe estimated emissions and techniques for reducing emissions from the following: compressors; hydraulically fractured oil well completions and associated gas during production; leaks; liquids unloading; and pneumatic devices. The public has until June 16, 2014 to provide comments, which EPA will use in conjunction with the papers to develop a strategy to further reduce methane and VOC emissions pursuant to the Obama Administration’s Strategy to Reduce Methane Emissions revealed in March.
This week the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) announced the availability of emissions data from oil and gas operations in the Commonwealth. According to the PADEP press release, the data represents “2012 emissions levels from Marcellus Shale natural gas production and processing operations as well as compressor stations that receive gas from traditional oil and gas well sites.” PADEP reportedly received data from “56 Marcellus Shale operators covering 8,800 natural gas wells and 70 operators of 400 compressor stations.” Air contamination sources in the industry report emissions annually to PADEP.
This week the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a proposal to amend Subpart W of the greenhouse gas reporting program rules, which affects the Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems source category. According to EPA’s fact sheet, “[t]he proposal includes revisions to certain calculation methods, monitoring and data reporting requirements, terms and definitions, and technical and editorial errors that were identified during the course of implementation.” The fact sheet also indicates that EPA is proposing confidentiality determinations for “new or substantially revised data elements” and proposing a revised confidentiality determination for one existing data element. EPA expects that the amendments would not “significantly” change the amount of entities or greenhouse gas emissions covered by the reporting program.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) recently published on its website a series of video training tutorials to provide guidance on how to complete quarterly well inspections under the Mechanical Integrity Assessment (MIA) requirements. MIA forms, instructions and user guides are also available on DEP’s website.
DEP also recently published a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document addressing the Bureau of Air Quality’s General Permit-5 (GP-5) and Plan Approval Exemption Category No. 38. The GP-5 is a General Plan Approval and/or Operating Permit used to permit emissions from natural gas gathering, compression and/or processing facilities that are minor air contamination facilities, while Exemption Category No. 38 concerns a permit exemption for air emission sources located at a well pad.
On December 14, 2013, the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB) amended the Title V annual emission fee assessed by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)’s Bureau of Air Quality, increasing the fee to $85 per ton of “regulated pollutant,” for up to 4,000 tons of emissions. This represents an increase of $27.50 per ton of emissions, moving from the existing rate of $57.50 per ton. Citing DEP budget deficit problems, the EQB described this $27.50 increase as “a bridge to allow additional time for the development of a comprehensive fee structure for the air quality program.” The annual Title V emission fee requirement affects owners and operators of facilities that are classified as major sources of air pollution under Section 501 of the Federal Clean Air Act and subject to the Title V permitting program. The increased rate will affect Title V fees payable by September 1, 2014, for emissions occurring in calendar year 2013.
Earlier this week, U.S. EPA published final revisions to the New Source Performance Standards for the Oil and Natural Gas Sector (i.e., 40 CFR 60, Subpart OOOO). As discussed in a previous post, EPA has made significant changes to the provisions affecting storage tanks. The revised regulations are effective immediately. Additional information is available here.
Last week the University of Texas, in conjunction with the Environmental Defense Fund and 9 companies involved in natural gas production, released a study which found that 0.42% of natural gas produced in the U.S. is emitted into the atmosphere as methane (the main component of natural gas). This estimate is lower than the leak rates found in a 2010 Cornell University study, which estimated leakage at between 0.6 to 3.2%, and U.S. EPA’s review of 2011 data which showed that gas leaked from wells at a rate of 0.47%. Researchers in the University of Texas study recorded direct measurements of actual emissions at 190 well sites, whereas Cornell and U.S. EPA researchers used data provided by drillers. This is the first of multiple studies to be completed by the University of Texas.
A report created by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s Office of Oil and Gas, which was anticipated pursuant to previous studies conducted by the DEP, indicates that no new rules are necessary to protect West Virginia’s air quality from natural gas drilling, reports The Sacramento Bee. The report stated that based upon air quality monitoring data there were no indications of a public health emergency or threat because of hydraulic fracturing. The results of the study were presented to West Virginia State Lawmakers on Tuesday during an interim committee meeting.
Recently confirmed U. S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy spoke at a forum at the University of Colorado School of Law on August 14 and addressed President Obama’s Climate Action Plan before participating in a panel discussion. In her remarks, McCarthy emphasized that climate change is not an “ancillary environmental concern” and stated that the EPA will work with states and representatives of the oil and gas industry to ensure that natural gas extraction will not harm public health and the environment. “The President has asked us to bring leaders in oil and gas to the table … natural gas is part of the energy future for this country, but natural gas extraction has to be done in an environmentally safe way.”
On August 8, 2013, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) announced significant changes to its air permitting policy regarding unconventional gas well sites. Pursuant to the state Air Pollution Control Act, PADEP may identify sources or categories of sources that are exempt from plan approval (i.e., source construction or modification permit) requirements. Since 1996, PADEP offered a broad “automatic” exemption for oil and gas exploration and production facilities and operations. This exemption was narrowed considerably this week when PADEP published a revised version of its “Air Quality Permit Exemption List.”
Specifically, PADEP has revised the exemptions for Category No. 33, pertaining to compressed natural gas fueling, and Category No. 38, pertaining to oil and gas exploration, development, production facilities and associated equipment and operation. The most notable change is with respect to Category No. 38: PADEP will now require unconventional operators to satisfy criteria stricter than federal air regulations – namely 40 CFR 60 Subpart OOOO, issued by U.S. EPA last year and currently being revised – in order to qualify for the plan approval exemption. For example, the operator will need to implement a leak detection and repair (LDAR) program across the entire well pad and facility, although the federal regulations require LDAR for storage vessels only.
Unconventional operators have a choice between demonstrating satisfaction of the stringent criteria in exemption Category No. 38 or seeking a plan approval from PADEP. Conventional well operations remain broadly exempt from the plan approval requirement. For purposes of the Air Quality Permit Exemption List, PADEP defines a conventional well as any well that does not meet the statutory definition of “unconventional well” in Act 13 of 2012. Even when a well site is exempt from the requirement to obtain a plan approval, it is still subject to all other applicable air quality regulations, such as the reporting and recordkeeping requirements of 40 CFR 60 Subpart OOOO.
PADEP received 651 comments on the revisions to its Air Quality Permit Exemption List. A comment response document is available.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) recently announced that its long-term Marcellus air sampling study in southwestern Pennsylvania will continue for the remainder of the 2013 year. PADEP also released a guidance document which gives detailed information on the study, including its sampling design and methods of analysis for data collected. The sampling will include ground-level ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrogen sulfide, methane and various volatile organic compounds and hazardous air pollutants. A final report is expected to be released in the first quarter of 2014.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the pre-publication version of its final revisions to the New Source Performance Standards for the Oil and Natural Gas Sector (i.e., 40 CFR 60, Subpart OOOO). EPA made significant changes to the provisions affecting “storage vessels,” including storage tanks, used in oil or natural gas production and transmission. In general, an individual storage tank is subject to the rule if it has the potential to emit six or more tons per year of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). According to EPA, “storage tanks subject to the rule may be located anywhere along the oil and natural gas production and transmission process,” which, for natural gas, “extends from the natural gas well to the point where gas enters the distribution system.”
The proposal to revise Subpart OOOO was first published in the Federal Register in April 2013. EPA revised Subpart OOOO in response to several petitions for reconsideration of the final rule issued in 2012. EPA has acknowledged that a far greater number of storage vessels come online each year than the agency originally anticipated. On that basis, EPA has delayed the compliance deadline for some storage vessels. The effective date of the final revisions will be identified upon publication in the Federal Register.
On July 18, 2013, the full U.S. Senate voted to confirm Gina McCarthy as the next U.S. EPA Administrator. The Senate voted 59-40 in favor of President Obama’s controversial nominee, after months of delay. The President formally nominated McCarthy in March 2013. McCarthy has led EPA’s air office since 2009 and is expected to play a pivotal role in implementing the President’s Climate Action Plan.
On Tuesday, President Obama announced his long-awaited “Climate Action Plan,” which focuses largely on restricting carbon emissions from power plants. Demand for natural gas is expected to increase as a result.
According to recent reports, the Inspector General (IG) has informed officials at the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) that an investigation will be conducted in connection with the agency’s efforts to reduce methane emissions from natural gas distribution lines. The IG investigation, coming on the heels of a recent report criticizing U.S. EPA’s methods for determining natural gas sector emissions, could help to clarify the extent of the agency’s authority to regulate methane emissions from distribution lines.