Ohio joins a group of states — including West Virginia, Alabama and the Attorney General of Michigan — and a group of oil and gas industry associations — including the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) — that are asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to block vital climate change and public health protections that will reduce methane and smog-forming pollution from the oil and gas industry.
The group of 14 states and state agencies, the IPAA and other groups, and the Western Energy Alliance filed petitions challenging the standards with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. They join the states of Texas and North Dakota which also petitioned to block the recently finalized emissions safeguards.
In a statement, Mayda Sanchez, Executive Director at the Ohio Sustainable Business Council said, “The standards set a standard of stewardship for the oil and gas industry that reduces wasted energy and methane pollution that is driving major changes in our climate. The standards will also minimize other pollutants that harm public health. We are disappointed to see the state of Ohio and industry groups using resources to challenge these commonsense protections, when they should be working to make the industry operate more efficiently and responsibly to exceed the standards.” said Sanchez. “Some industry operators are already using cost-effective methane capture technologies, but many are not, so the standards are needed. Responsible stewardship of our finite natural resources and protecting America’s air and climate should be an industry priority.”
The methane mitigation industry offers a number of cost-effective technologies to prevent, control and monitor methane. There are 16 companies operating in Ohio, creating good paying jobs to Ohioans, while enabling the industry to harvest energy responsibly.
Read the full OSBC Press Release
