Gary Steinbauer, left, and Christina Puhnaty, right, of Babst, Calland, Clements and Zomnir. Courtesy photos Gary Steinbauer, left, and Christina Puhnaty, right, of Babst, Calland, Clements and Zomnir. Courtesy photos

Pennsylvania oil and gas producers and midstream operators are faced with yet another suite of federal air regulations following the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent finalization of its far-reaching Methane Rule. On Dec. 2, the EPA released a 1,690-page, pre-publication version of the Methane Rule or the Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review. The Methane Rule is aimed at strengthening existing and adding new regulations limiting emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the crude oil and natural gas industrial source category. These federal Clean Air Act (CAA) regulations will apply to a host of new and existing emission sources and activities within the oil and natural gas industry. With Pennsylvania producing more natural gas than any other state except Texas, oil and gas producers and midstream operators must contend with another slate of new, more stringent federal air requirements.

The Methane Rule will become effective within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register. While the EPA released it in a single package, the Methane Rule is comprised of four related regulatory actions: updated new source performance standards regulating VOC and methane emission sources for certain emission sources and activities constructed, reconstructed, or modified after Dec. 6, 2022, which will be promulgated at 40 CFR Part 60, Subpart OOOOb; a set of emission guidelines for states to follow when adopting performance standards to limit methane emissions from specified existing air emission sources within the oil and gas industry, which will be promulgated at 40 CFR Part 60, Subpart OOOOc; revisions to previously promulgated requirements codified at 40 CFR Part 60, Subpart OOOOa, stemming from Congress' disapproval of changes that were made in 2022; and a final protocol for performing optical gas imaging (OGI) inspections to detect leaks from equipment used in the oil and gas industry. This article focuses on the first two components of the Methane Rule, which include new VOC and methane emission and performance standards for oil and gas producers and midstream operators.