As part of our landmark 16-study series and ongoing work in measuring methane emissions, we previously published a paper that compared and reconciled top-down (airborne-based measurements ) with bottom-up (emissions inventory, using ground-based measurements) emissions. This paper found that 1% of natural gas production sites accounted for 44% of total emissions from all sites, or… Keep reading →
That whoosh you just heard was China passing the United States in the race for the 21st century energy economy. Or is it the 21st century jobs race? Or the “world’s only superpower” race? Unfortunately, it might be all three. Last week, China announced it will invest $361 billion over the next three years in… Keep reading →
2016 was a big year for progress in the U.S. power sector. Renewable energy sources provided 16.9 percent of the country’s electricity in the first half of 2016, up from 13.7 percent for all of 2015. The country’s first offshore wind farm opened off the coast of Rhode Island. Most importantly, carbon emissions from the power sector are… Keep reading →
Recently the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) took an important first step to implement new requirements aimed at reducing methane emissions from new oil and gas operations. Methane is the main component of natural gas – 51% of Pennsylvania households depend on it to fuel their homes. The more methane is wasted, the less… Keep reading →
Pulling from deep experience serving as counsel in highly-regulated industries and careers on Capitol Hill, Balch & Bingham’s team of energy and environmental attorneys forecast what to expect in 2017
On December 12, 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule.
The legal fight to defend the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) recent efforts to prevent oil and gas companies from wasting methane on public and tribal owned land continued yesterday. EDF and a coalition of local, regional, tribal and national allies filed a brief opposing efforts by industry organizations and a handful states to block… Keep reading →
President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to drastically change the federal government’s role and policies in relation to energy, the environment and climate change.
Fourteen months ago, during a U.S. Senate hearing on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), EPA was asked to explain how it decides how much ethanol will be blended into the nation’s fuel supply each year under the agency’s RFS authority. You can read about that conversation here, but the gist of the exchange is that… Keep reading →
On Nov. 23, 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency released its final 2017 volumes under the Renewable Fuel Standard.
