{"id":22317,"date":"2023-02-21T16:35:53","date_gmt":"2023-02-21T21:35:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=22317"},"modified":"2023-03-03T14:41:02","modified_gmt":"2023-03-03T19:41:02","slug":"new-study-underscores-need-for-better-methane-measurement-and-strong-regulations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2023\/02\/21\/new-study-underscores-need-for-better-methane-measurement-and-strong-regulations\/","title":{"rendered":"New study underscores need for better methane measurement and strong regulations"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

New research<\/a> reveals\u00a0methane emissions from Saskatchewan\u2019s oil and gas industry are much higher than previously thought. Fortunately, the Trudeau government has a tremendous opportunity to address this problem as it crafts next year\u2019s federal budget and demonstrates its commitment to ratchet down climate pollution.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Methane is the primary ingredient of natural gas and a major contributor to global warming. Canada has made promises<\/a> to reduce its methane pollution, but study<\/a> after study<\/a> after study<\/a> shows\u00a0methane emissions from oil and gas operations are much higher than what\u00a0the industry reports. Without fixing this problem, it will be harder for Canada to meet its climate goals.<\/p>\n

This latest research looked at oil production facilities in Saskatchewan and found that methane pollution from specific types of heavy oil sites was four times higher than what industry reports. Nearly a thousand facilities were emitting over ten tonnes of pollution an hour, meanwhile the government reports less than three tonnes from these same sites.<\/p>\n

This astronomical difference between what Canada reports and what scientists\u00a0measure adds up to more chaos for the climate. We can do better.<\/p>\n New study underscores need for better methane measurement and strong regulations <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n

Bad math leads to ineffective policy<\/strong><\/p>\n

Traditionally, federal and provincial governments rely on industry reporting\u00a0to estimate\u00a0emissions. These estimates are used to inform policies and\u00a0track progress against emission reduction targets. But if the numbers are wrong, we could make the dangerous mistake of thinking that we\u2019re cutting more climate pollution than we really are.<\/p>\n

Case-in-point: In December 2021, the Saskatchewan government released a report on oil and gas emissions claiming that major sources of methane pollution had been cut by 50%. Saskatchewan\u2019s then Minister for Energy and Resources celebrated the accomplishment<\/a> , saying the province had \u201csurpassed current reduction targets\u201d and that all energy producers should emulate the province\u2019s regulations.<\/p>\n

But the research tells another story and reinforces the fact that we need to get out in the field and measure this pollution directly. We can\u2019t afford to base our climate policies on guess work.<\/p>\n

The study\u2019s authors reiterate the need for better monitoring and measurement saying, \u201cThe persistent misreporting of venting volumes and the resulting inaccuracies in bottom-up GHG inventories pose considerable risk to reduction targets and the creation of efficient regulations…Future regulations will need to enforce minimum standards for measurement if emissions are to be verifiably reduced.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Trudeau Government is aware of the need for improved monitoring and measurement and pledged<\/a> to create a Centre of Excellence which would promote direct measurements of methane. The same commitment was reiterated in the Minister of Natural Resources\u2019 mandate letter<\/a> which lists top priorities for that department. These commitments are laudable, but only if the government puts its money where its mouth is and fully funds the Centre in its next budget. Knowing how much methane is being emitted and from where will help us prioritize the interventions needed to reduce emissions and meet our climate commitments.<\/p>\n

Saskatchewan provides a cautionary example of how bad estimates can leave governments overconfident, leading to ineffective policies for\u00a0pollution reduction.<\/p>\n

Saskatchewan\u2019s regulations rely, in part, on emission levels to determine which rules different oil operators need to follow. Those who produce more emissions must follow more stringent rules so, if emissions are underreported, regulations become less effective.<\/p>\n

And when asked about creating policies<\/a> to mitigate climate change, Saskatchewan\u2019s Premier, Scott Moe, said \u201cSaskatchewan industries are doing that. Saskatchewan has an industry that has reduced its methane emissions by 60 per cent relative to 2015.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new study suggests that Saskatchewan’s declaration of victory is likely to be premature, and without the right numbers, governments will never get their policies right.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New research reveals\u00a0methane emissions from Saskatchewan\u2019s oil and gas industry are much higher than previously thought. Fortunately, the Trudeau government has a tremendous opportunity to address this problem as it crafts next year\u2019s federal budget and demonstrates its commitment to ratchet down climate pollution.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":152982,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8015,113408],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-22317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-air-quality","category-methane-regulations"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNew study underscores need for better methane measurement and strong regulations - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2023\/02\/21\/new-study-underscores-need-for-better-methane-measurement-and-strong-regulations\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New study underscores need for better methane measurement and strong regulations - Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"New research reveals\u00a0methane emissions from Saskatchewan\u2019s oil and gas industry are much higher than previously thought. 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