[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 20 (Monday, February 6, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E149]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

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                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 6, 2017

  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained and unable to 
attend session on Friday, February 3, due to personal reasons. Had I 
been present, I would have voted no on H.J. Res. 36, roll call No. 78, 
which provided for congressional disapproval of President Obama's 
Methane Waste Prevention Rule.
  I am outraged by House Republican efforts to overturn substantial 
environmental policies of the Obama Administration, including and 
especially the Methane Waste Prevention Rule. This rule caps, for the 
first time, the amount of methane that oil and gas producers operating 
under federal leases are allowed to ``flare,'' or burn as waste. It 
also prohibits operators from releasing or ``venting'' natural gas into 
the atmosphere, and requires them to replace equipment that allows 
large amounts of methane to ``bleed'' into the air. This rule would 
result in 175,000 to 180,000 fewer tons of methane emissions each year, 
which is equivalent to removing nearly 1 million vehicles from our 
roads.
  As a leading member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I 
have long been a champion for a cleaner, healthier environment for all 
New Yorkers and the American people. I have relentlessly fought to 
close Indian Point, oppose the Spectra Algonquin Pipeline, and resist 
the plan to anchor barges carrying crude oil along the Hudson River.
  I will continue fighting to stop Republicans in Congress from 
undermining our environmental regulations and turning back the clock to 
a time when corporations could pollute unchecked.

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