[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 73 (Wednesday, April 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2269-S2271]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
S.J. Res. 14
Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in support of S.J.
Res. 14, which we will vote on later today. I want to thank Senator
Heinrich, Senator Markey, and Senator King for their leadership on this
resolution. And I might be mistaken here, but I understand that when
the Presiding Officer was Governor of Colorado, the Presiding Officer
might have set the precedent for the creation of this point of view
that is expressed in the resolution before us. So the Navy salutes
Colorado.
The American people rely on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
to ensure that our Nation has clean air, clean water, a clean
environment, and a safe climate. Unfortunately, in 2020, under the
previous administration, the EPA strayed from its mission any number of
times.
One of those missteps was that Agency's methane rescission rule,
which deregulated methane emissions from the oil and gas industry--our
Nation's largest industrial source of this dangerous greenhouse gas. By
passing this resolution, Congress, today, will reject and nullify this
dangerous rule and restore clean air and climate protections from our
Nation's largest sources of methane pollution.
Let me explain what methane is and why it is so harmful to our
climate and to our health.
Methane is a super pollutant that damages our lungs and our planet.
Compared to carbon dioxide, methane is a small part of our overall
greenhouse gas emissions. Having said that, though, scientists tell us
that methane is responsible for roughly--get this--one-quarter of the
manmade global warming that we are witnessing today. Let me say that
again: Methane is responsible for roughly one-quarter of the manmade
global warming that we are experiencing and witnessing today.
Over a 20-year period, methane is 84 times more harmful to our
climate than carbon dioxide--84 times. For a small molecule, methane
punches above its weight when it comes to its contributions to climate
change.
The oil and gas industry is our Nation's largest source of methane,
responsible for nearly 30 percent of total methane emissions. For
comparison, this amount of methane pollution has the same climate
effect as the emissions from our Nation's entire fleet of passenger
vehicles in a year.
In addition to damaging our climate, methane emissions also
contribute to ground-level ozone, known as smog. Breathing in smog
harms our lungs, and it aggravates lung diseases like bronchitis and
asthma. Exposure to smog has been linked to premature death, and
children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to these health
risks. If we want to meaningfully tackle the danger to our health and
our climate, we need to reduce methane emissions from the entire oil
and gas sector.
In 2016, as I was alluding to earlier, the EPA acted to do just that.
Building on State actions, such as in Colorado, whose former chief
executive is presiding at this moment, the EPA put into place
commonsense Clean Air Act regulations that required the oil and gas
industry to update its equipment. The rule also required the industry
to inspect frequently in order to find and repair leaks and
malfunctions that are such a big source of our methane problem.
Based on feedback from the oil and gas industry meeting, these new
emission requirements did not place an undue burden on companies or
raise costs for consumers. In fact, many oil and gas companies and
industry groups supported the measures, and they still do. That is why
it was so surprising when, in September of 2020, the EPA issued the
final methane rescission rule to roll back what so many believed to be
commonsense approaches for reducing methane risks.
While the Trump administration moved forward with this damaging
policy, the consequences of climate change were roiling--roiling--our
Nation. California, for example, experienced its worst wildfire season
on record, with historic forest fires covering an area about the size
of the State of Rhode Island. Other Western States--including Oregon,
Montana, and Colorado--were ablaze with unprecedented damaging
wildfires.
At the same time, other parts of our country were being battered by
violent, extreme weather. The people of Iowa experienced one of the
most costly thunderstorms in history, with hurricane force winds,
causing $7.5 billion in economic damage. It flattened, I am told, over
half of that State's corn and soybean crops in one day.
Coastal towns in Southern States like Florida, like Louisiana, and
like South Carolina were battered by hurricane after hurricane after
hurricane. In the summer of 2020, last summer, we saw the most
hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean in recorded history.
Despite all of this, the Trump administration took a step to undo one
of the key tools available to us to combat methane emissions that
contribute greatly to climate change. The methane rescission rule was a
stark departure from the widely accepted, science-based, and
commonsense view that we should protect people and our planet from the
dangers of methane.
In promulgating the methane rescission rule, the Trump administration
ignored the global scientific community, including EPA's own Agency
scientists, who warned that the extreme weather events of 2020 were
just the tip of the iceberg of consequences we can expect if we don't
keep global warming below an increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius between
now and 2040.
The bottom line is that the Trump methane rescission rule would allow
more methane pollution, increase public health dangers, and bring us
ever closer to the brink of irreversible climate catastrophe. It is
this Trump EPA action that my colleagues and I reject today through the
resolution before us.
The methane rescission rule stated that methane couldn't be regulated
under the Clean Air Act. We reject that. The methane rescission rule
stated that EPA couldn't regulate the entire oil and gas sector from
wellhead to storage. We reject that. The methane rescission rule stated
that greenhouse gasses couldn't be regulated. We reject that. The
methane rescission rule also reversed EPA's longstanding position on
what is required to regulate a pollutant, making it harder for EPA to
implement clean air and climate protections. We reject that as well.
With approval of this resolution, though, EPA can and should still
move forward to strengthen methane standards for the oil and gas sector
in the future. This effort is also very timely, coming on the heels of
President
[[Page S2270]]
Biden's climate commitment for our Nation to reduce emissions by 50
percent from 2005 levels by the end of this decade--by 2030.
Passing this resolution will be good for our health. Passing this
resolution will be good for our planet. And passing this resolution
will be good for America's economy. That is why so many States, so many
environmental groups, and even a number of significant oil and gas
companies support this resolution.
Joining over 60 environmental groups, as well as 20 State attorneys
general, seven major oil and gas companies support today's resolution
to reinstate requirements to control methane emissions. From the
Environmental Defense Fund to Shell, from the League of Conservation
Voters to BP, from the Natural Resources Defense Council to Equinor,
there is a broad consensus among stakeholders with different
interests--different interests--that Congress should reject and nullify
the methane rescission rule.
So why do a number of oil and gas companies want Congress to reject
the Trump rule, restore existing regulations, and pursue further
regulations? They know the best way to boost growth in their sector and
across the economy is to keep methane and other climate pollution in
check. With unchecked methane releases in its operations, natural gas
production and use become part of the climate problem, not a part of
the solution as we endeavor to drive toward lower carbon fuels.
Companies know where the global market is heading. They know
regulations will support innovation and technology deployment in their
industry, bringing down emission reduction costs for everyone.
I sometimes like to quote Albert Einstein, who said, among other
things: ``In adversity lies opportunity.'' Think about that: ``In
adversity lies opportunity.'' We can see that in the issue of methane
pollution and in climate change. It presents plenty of challenges. Yes,
that is true. But it also presents a remarkable opportunity. It is an
opportunity for us to protect our planet, improve the air that we
breathe, and strengthen our economy.
At the same time, the product that the oil and gas industry is
capturing can be sold to fuel more homes and businesses across the
country. I want to say that again, too. At the same time, the product
that the oil and gas industry is capturing can be sold to fuel more
homes and businesses across the country. That is why today I will
gladly vote for this resolution, which reaffirms that the Clean Air Act
requires EPA to take action to protect Americans from dangerous
pollution like methane.
In passing this resolution today, Congress is rejecting the Trump
rule's baseless interpretation of the Clean Air Act and, in its place,
reinstating commonsense methane public health and climate protections
across the entire oil and gas sector. We are also clearing a path for
additional protections from methane and other hazardous climate
pollutants.
As a Senate, we are making our intent clear: The Clean Air Act gives
EPA the authority and the mandate to establish methane emissions
standards, even stronger than the ones we reinstate with this
resolution. This includes all facets of the oil and gas industry now
and moving forward, from production to processing and from transmission
to storage.
We are saying to EPA loud and clear: It is your mission to protect
the environment, to protect human health and public welfare from the
dangers of climate pollutants like methane. And there is a lot of work
still to do before that mission can be achieved. It is time that we get
to that work. We don't have a lot of time to waste.
I have a couple of unanimous consent requests I would like to offer.
One is to place supportive materials into the Record. I ask unanimous
consent to enter into the Record several of my materials in support of
S.J. Res. 14 that is before us today; first, the Biden administration's
Statement of Administration Policy supporting passage of the
resolution; second, two letters of support for passing this joint
resolution--one from the 57 leading environmental and advocacy groups
and another, the Shell Oil Company.
These letters demonstrate the breadth of support for regulating this
harmful pollutant and rejecting the methane rescission rule.
I ask unanimous consent for these to be inserted into the Record as
appropriate
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Statement of Administration Policy
S.J. Res. 14--A joint resolution providing for congressional
disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule
submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to ``Oil and
Natural Gas Sector: Emission Standards for New, Reconstructed, and
Modified Sources Review''
(Sen. Heinrich, D-NM, and 23 cosponsors)
The Administration supports passage of S.J. Res. 14, a
joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval of
the rule ``Oil and Natural Gas Sector: Emission Standards for
New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources Review,'' published
at 85 Fed. Reg. 57018 (September 14, 2020). This action would
ensure that this rule, which eliminated pollution standards
for methane emissions from the oil and gas sector and
eliminated all emission standards for the transmission and
storage segments of that sector, will have no force or effect
and reinstate the pollution reduction requirements
established under the Clean Air Act in 2012 and 2016.
Addressing methane leaks through detection and repair by
using already cost-effective technologies can spur the
creation of good-paying jobs fixing leaking equipment and
pipelines--all while minimizing waste and reducing this
powerful source of pollution. Today, the oil and gas sector
is the largest industrial source of methane emissions--a
potent climate-disrupting greenhouse gas that is responsible
for approximately one-third of the global warming and the
resulting climate disruption we are already experiencing from
climate change. In order to effectively mitigate climate
change, addressing methane pollution from this and other
sectors is an urgent and essential step.
Every American has a fundamental right to breathe clean air
and drink clean water. These methane emissions--leaking
during oil and gas production, transmission, and distribution
activities--also contribute to the formation of smog, or
ground-level ozone, which is harmful to both human health and
agriculture. Oil and gas production is also a significant
emitter of carcinogenic and smog-forming volatile organic
compounds into frontline communities. These communities, as
well as children, the elderly, outdoor workers, and
individuals with respiratory conditions, are at higher risk
of experiencing harmful health outcomes due to exposure to
such pollution. Oil and gas pollution can also be carried by
the wind and intensify air pollution problems in communities
along that path, including across state boundaries.
The Clean Air Act authorizes the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) to protect Americans from dangerous air
pollution, including methane and volatile organic compounds.
Nonetheless, the rule that this resolution disapproves of
took four harmful actions that increased the amount of
harmful pollution to which Americans are exposed: (1) the
elimination of pollution standards for methane emissions from
the oil and gas sector; (2) the elimination of all air
pollution standards for the transmission and storage segments
of the oil and gas sector; (3) removal of the predicate that
establishes EPA's obligation to address the extensive methane
pollution emitted by existing sources; and (4) establishment
of a new, non-statutory requirement that EPA make an
additional, pollutant-specific finding of significant
contribution to endangerment before addressing harmful air
pollution from a sector already regulated under the Clean Air
Act. All four of these actions would be reversed by the
passage and signature of the resolution.
S.J. Res. 14 will restore robust Clean Air Act pollution
standards for this sector, protecting American communities.
The resolution will also clear the pathway for EPA to
evaluate opportunities to promulgate even stronger standards
under section 111 of the Clean Air Act to address dangerous
methane and other pollution from both new and existing
sources across the oil and gas sector. The Administration
looks forward to working with the Congress to restore these
critically important pollution standards.
____
April 26, 2021.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Kevin McCarthy,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Charles Schumer,
Majority Leader, U.S. Senate,
Washington. DC.
Hon. Mitch McConnell,
Minority Leader, U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Schumer, Minority
Leader McCarthy, and Minority Leader McConnell: On behalf of
our collective millions of members and supporters, we write
to express our full support of Senate Joint Resolution (S.J.
Res.) 14 and House Joint Resolution (H.J. Res. 34), providing
for congressional disapproval of recent executive action to
roll back the 2016 methane and volatile organic compound
[[Page S2271]]
standards. We urge Congress to swiftly vote to pass this
resolution, an action which would allow the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) to accelerate strengthening
safeguards against methane and other pollution.
As you know, methane is a potent pollutant that is
responsible for around 25 percent of the impacts of climate
change we are experiencing today. In 2016, the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) established regulations to tackle
methane and other dangerous emissions from new and modified
sources within the oil and gas sector, which is the largest
industrial source of methane pollution. This action took
concrete steps to implement science-based standards to combat
previously unchecked emissions. The oil and gas sector is
likewise a significant source of smog-forming volatile
organic compounds and hazardous air pollutants in communities
across the nation.
In the waning days of the previous administration, EPA
finalized a rule that eliminated safeguards that protect our
climate and communities from oil and gas pollution and
attempted to erect barriers to the promulgation of future
standards. Many oil and gas operators, natural gas users like
utilities, states, and environmental and health groups
support federal standards to regulate methane emissions. Many
environmental and health groups, state and local governments,
utilities and other gas purchasers, oil and gas operators,
and even the American Petroleum Institute (API), have
expressed support for federal rules to curb the oil and gas
industry's wasteful methane releases--wasted gas worth $2.4
billion, which could be used to heat approximately 12.5
million homes in a year. Adopting S.J. Res. 14 and H.J. Res.
34 will reinstate pollution protections and clear the path
for EPA to move forward with widely-supported, sensible
safeguards for methane and other pollution from oil and gas
production.
We must take early action to reduce harmful methane
emissions as a necessary step to combating the climate
crisis. Regulation of dangerous methane emissions is critical
to lowering the magnitude of warming we will experience
around 2050. We need leaders who will fight for a healthier
future and seek ambitious next-generation standards for new
and existing oil and gas facilities. S.J. Res. 14 provides
the EPA with a clean slate to get back to a regulatory
process that makes scientific sense and gets our goal of
ambitious methane emissions reductions back on track, while
advancing our collective climate and environmental justice
goals.
Sincerely,
Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, Brighter Green,
Center for Civic Policy, Center for Human Rights and
Environment, Chapel Hill Organization for Clean Energy,
Citizens Caring for the Future, Citizens' Environmental
Coalition, Clean Air Council, Clean Air Task Force,
Clean Water Action, Climate Advocates Voces Unidas,
Climate Law & Policy Project, Conservation Colorado,
Conservation Voters New Mexico, Dakota Resource
Council.
Defend Our Future, Earth Action, Inc., Earthjustice,
Earthworks, Empire State Consumer Project,
Environmental Defense Fund, Fort Berthold POWER,
Franciscan Action Network, Grand Canyon Trust,
GreenLatinos, Health Action New Mexico, Hispanic Access
Foundation, Interfaith Power & Light, League of
Conservation Voters, League of Oil and Gas Impacted
Coloradans, Moms Clean Air Force, National Organization
for Women, National Parks Conservation Association.
Natural Resources Defense Council, New Mexico Interfaith
Power and Light, New Mexico Sportsmen, Partnership for
Responsible Business, Powder River Basin Resource
Council, ProgressNow Colorado, Project CoffeeHouse,
Protect All Children's Environment, Public Citizen,
Rachel Carson Council, Responsible Drilling Alliance,
Rio Grande Indivisible.
Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, Santa Fe Green Chamber of
Commerce, Sciencecorps, Sierra Club, The Evangelical
Environmental Network, The Greater Prince William
Climate Action Network, The Ohio Environmental Council,
The Wilderness Society, Waterkeeper Alliance, Western
Colorado Alliance, Western Organization of Resource
Councils, Young Evangelicals for Climate Action.
____
Shell Oil Company,
Houston, TX, April 22, 2021.
Hon. Tom Carper,
Chairman, Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Shelley Moore Capito,
Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Environment and Public
Works, Washington, DC.
Hon. Frank Pallone,
Chairman, House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Washington,
DC.
Hon. Cathy McMorris Rodgers,
Ranking Member, House Committee on Energy and Commerce,
Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Carper, Ranking Member Capito, Chairman
Pallone, and Ranking Member Rodgers: Shell supports passage
of a proposed joint resolution of disapproval under the
Congressional Review Act (CRA) to rescind the 2020 rule ``Oil
and Natural Gas Sector: Emission Standards for New,
Reconstructed and Modified Sources Review'' and reinstate the
direct regulation of methane emissions from new and modified
sources established by the Environmental Protection Agency in
2016.
Beginning in 2015, Shell worked with EPA and industry peers
to develop a workable approach to regulating methane from
onshore oil and gas sources. Shell was the first oil major to
signal support for the rule. Beginning in 2017, Shell urged
the Trump Administration to make desired refinements to the
regulation, but to maintain the direct regulation of methane
from onshore sources established by the previous
Administration.
The efficient regulation of methane from onshore oil and
gas production makes good business sense, as methane captured
is methane sold, advances the energy transition and expands
the role of natural gas as a transition fuel. The 2016 rule
sparked innovation, contributing to the development of more
efficient and affordable pneumatics, better cameras and new
airborne imagery, tools that help us better understand and
control methane leaks from our assets.
I have appreciated the leadership of those in Congress
working to advance this joint resolution. I have attached an
oped in support of the resolution published last week in the
Houston Chronicle.
Sincerely,
Gretchen Watkins,
President.
Mr. CARPER. Now, Mr. President, I will yield the floor, but before I
do, I want to salute you for your role in an earlier day, in an earlier
place, your State of Colorado, for helping get this started. We are in
your debt. Good work. God bless.
With that, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Rosen). The Senator from Iowa