{"id":18131,"date":"2018-07-13T12:49:51","date_gmt":"2018-07-13T16:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=18131"},"modified":"2018-07-13T13:21:48","modified_gmt":"2018-07-13T17:21:48","slug":"on-pollution-facts-dont-be-fooled-by-rhetoric-of-oil-and-gas-trade-groups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2018\/07\/13\/on-pollution-facts-dont-be-fooled-by-rhetoric-of-oil-and-gas-trade-groups\/","title":{"rendered":"On pollution facts, don\u2019t be fooled by rhetoric of oil and gas trade groups"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Once again, a trade group funded by the oil and gas industry is trying to distort the facts on the industry\u2019s pollution.<\/p>\n

In a recent blog post, Texans for Natural Gas cherry picked government data in an attempt to argue against the need for policies that protect public health and the environment.<\/p>\n

Posts like this \u2013 which take select pieces of data in order to make broad generalizations about industry\u2019s progress toward reducing pollution \u2013 often fail to tell the whole story about the harmful emissions that warm the planet<\/a>, jeopardize public health<\/a>, and result in the massive waste<\/a> of U.S. energy resources.<\/p>\n

When reading industry-sponsored pollution assessments, there are a few crucial things to keep in mind.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Read the fine print. <\/strong><\/p>\n

In one of their latest posts, TNG touts the fact that venting and flaring of associated gas<\/em> has fallen 17 percent from 2013 to 2016. This reads like good news.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately it\u2019s not the full story. Emissions from the venting and flaring of associated gas \u2013 essentially the gas that is produced as a byproduct of oil \u2013 are only a small percentage of industry\u2019s total pollution, less than 0.5 percent.<\/p>\n

If you look at total emissions from oil production, emissions actually increased 8 percent during that time period, which is hardly worth celebrating.<\/p>\n

Ask why. <\/strong><\/p>\n

TNG also notes emissions from natural gas well completions dropped by over 80 percent over this same time period. Again, this reads like great progress, but it\u2019s important to consider why <\/em>the numbers from this activity fell so rapidly.<\/p>\n

A further look at the data suggests two critical factors.<\/p>\n

First, development of new wells declined. A lot<\/em>. In 2013, the industry hydraulically fractured 7,382 new natural gas wells for development. In 2016, that number plummeted to 3,105 largely due to falling natural gas prices. That\u2019s nearly a 60 percent drop, so it\u2019s no coincidence that pollution associated with well completions similarly declined.<\/p>\n

Second, new regulations also played a role. In 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency started requiring drillers to use \u201cgreen completions\u201d when preparing a new well \u2013 a practice that studies show is successful in eliminating 99 percent of emissions from this activity.<\/p>\n

Consider scientific advancements.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While new standards to reduce emissions have been effective at controlling a portion of industry\u2019s pollution, recent research suggests additional actions are necessary in order to ensure natural gas lives up to its billing as a cleaner energy source.<\/p>\n

A recent study<\/a> in the journal Science, finds that methane emissions from the U.S. oil and gas supply chain are likely 60 percent higher than what is reported in the government\u2019s official estimates. These methane emissions double the climate impact of using natural gas for energy, and mean the industry is letting about $2 billion worth of natural gas escape into the atmosphere each year.<\/p>\n