{"id":21625,"date":"2022-02-28T11:25:23","date_gmt":"2022-02-28T16:25:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=21625"},"modified":"2022-02-28T11:51:06","modified_gmt":"2022-02-28T16:51:06","slug":"new-rystad-cost-analysis-makes-case-for-epa-to-end-routine-flaring-in-final-methane-rule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2022\/02\/28\/new-rystad-cost-analysis-makes-case-for-epa-to-end-routine-flaring-in-final-methane-rule\/","title":{"rendered":"New Rystad cost analysis makes case for EPA to end routine flaring in final methane rule"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>By Jon Goldstein and Grace Weatherall<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Reducing the amount of methane emitted from oil and gas infrastructure is among the cheapest and simplest solutions we have to reduce global warming quickly while protecting public health. The Environmental Protection Agency is in the midst of developing rules to curb these emissions from oil and gas producers across the country.<\/p>\n

A new analysis commissioned by EDF and conducted by Rystad Energy<\/a> makes it clear that eliminating routine flaring \u2014 a major source of rogue emissions \u2014 should be part of EPA\u2019s methane rulemaking.<\/p>\n

Though there are valid safety reasons for some minimal flaring, most of it occurs via routine flaring \u2014 when oil producers simply don\u2019t have a place to put the natural gas that emerges from the ground during oil production and simply burn it off. More than $1 billion of natural gas is wasted at flares every year, driving unnecessary and harmful climate and local air pollution \u2014 including methane, an extremely potent greenhouse gas \u2014 when natural gas is not fully burned.<\/p>\n

Rystad\u2019s report includes two key findings that should inform EPA\u2019s rulemaking.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Reducing flaring is cost-effective and doable<\/strong><\/p>\n

First, reducing routine flaring is cost-effective when the potential revenue from selling the captured natural gas is considered. In most cases, high flaring rates are the result of poor planning, like delays in connecting oil wells to gas infrastructure, a lack of gas transport capacity, or a company\u2019s failure to consider this \u201cwaste\u201d a viable product.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Some flaring fixes cost so little that they can turn a profit for operators and even increase electric grid resiliency. For example:<\/p>\n