Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
may 2016
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federal agencies & administration
EPA releases final rule on curbing methane emissions
May 24, 2016
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued three final rules earlier this month to reduce emissions of methane, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and other air pollutants from new and modified existing oil and gas production sources. A vital component of the Obama Administration’s Climate Action Plan is to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas industry by 40-45 percent by 2025; these three rules hope to help accomplish this goal.
The rules include provisions requiring a fixed schedule for monitoring leaks at well sites, the option to use innovative technologies to monitor leaks, and phased-in requirements to use new “green completion” technologies for capturing emissions from hydraulically fractured wells.
Proponents of the rule include many environmental groups, who praise the EPA and the Administration for their efforts to reduce methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. However, congressional Republicans who opposed the rule claim that it ignores the progress industry has already made in making their own methane reduction rules. As such, Republicans within the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Interior and Environment have included a provision in their fiscal year 2017 appropriations bill prohibiting the use of congressional funds to implement these new methane requirements. If passed, the bill would seriously undermine the Administration’s Climate Action Plan.
The bill still needs to be taken up and accepted by the full Committee before it can reach the House floor for a vote. The Senate has not yet released their version of bill.
Sources: E&E News, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), House Committee on Appropriations, the White House
DOE awards $4 million in R&D projects to recover critical materials from geothermal fluids
May 24, 2016
The Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded $4 million to 4 research and development (R&D) projects at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Washington, the University of Utah, and the University of Wyoming. The 4 projects will cover subtopics related to bioengineered microbes, magnetic nanofluids, and resource assessment, with the overall goal of assessing the amount of critical materials, such as rare earth minerals, that can be recovered from energy extraction fluids, and particularly from geothermal fluids.
Critical materials and minerals play a vital role in many clean energy technologies, such as the production of solar-voltaic cells, electric vehicles, and wind turbines. Rare earths are also critical to many defense activities.
This research is part of DOE’s efforts to secure supplies of critical materials, identify substitutes, and develop recycling procedures for the materials. These projects may enhance current applications of geothermal energy and support the development of geothermal projects.
Sources: The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)