Gas pipelines, flares in New Mexico pollute air more than feds report, research shows

Air pollution from fossil fuel operations in the Permian Basin doesn’t only come from the wells that drill for oil and gas, but also pipelines that move products throughout the region spanning southeast New Mexico and West Texas, according to recent research.

And those emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas, from leaking lines could be up to 14 times higher than previously estimated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, read an Oct. 4 report from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

That research was generated by scientists from Stanford University and University of Arizona, along with the EDF, and used aircraft to survey the Permian Basin’s pipelines between 2019 and 2021 – years of increased oil and gas production before and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

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They surveyed more than 10,000 miles of gathering pipelines in each of the four aerial campaigns, finding the lines emit 213,000 metric tons of methane – about 2.7 metric tons per year per kilometer, read the report.

That’s the climate impact, the EDF estimated, of 3.7 million cars or trucks and enough gas to meet the power needs of 2.1 million homes.

If that same rate was applied to gas gathering pipelines throughout the U.S., the report said it would increase the EPA’s national estimate by 27 percent.

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Erin Murphy, a senior attorney at the EDF who focuses on pipelines in both the midstream and downstream oil and gas sectors said the study excluded what are known as “operational emissions” or one-time emission events that are expected as pipelines are put into service.

She said instead the research studied repeat emissions believed to be leaks Murphy said operators could fix along their lines.

“There’s really a significant amount of methane leakage from gathering pipelines that has not been previously reported,” Murphy said. “They did an analysis that was conservatively looking at leaks that were recurring. That way they know that it’s a leak that is ongoing on the pipeline.”

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Murphy said the data showed the problem was at a large scale than previously believed and showed the impact existing technology could make in repairing the leaks and protecting the environment.

“If pipeline operators can find and fix these leaks of methane we can see big reductions in emissions,” Murphy said. “We know there is commercially accessible technology. These operators should be doing more to reduce these emissions on their pipelines.”

Fixing pipelines would also make them safer, she argued, with less air pollution in local communities and less chances of incidents like explosions or fires brought by the release of flammable materials.

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“It’s both a climate problem and a safety problem. It’s not just about the global climate issue,” Murphy said. “Whoever is nearby a pipeline is affected. Fixing the pipeline makes them more safe and less polluting.”

Feds expand oil and gas oversight. Is it enough?

Throughout the U.S., there are 435,000 miles of gathering lines, but many are not subject to federal emission requirements like leak detection and repair, although the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMSA), within the U.S. Department of Transportation, last year expanded safety requirements to 90,000 miles in 2021.

The 10,000 miles subject to federal emission detection and repair rules were expanded to 30,000 under the 2021 rule.

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But Murphy said there still wasn’t enough oversight of the U.S. pipeline system – only about 7 percent of the lines, nationwide, receive federal oversight.

Gas capture technology exists and is ready for deployment, she argued, and said the federal government should compel energy companies to do so.

“If we can reduce methane emissions, we can reduce that near-term warming,” Murphy said. “It’s low hanging fruit to address climate change. We know what the problem is; we know what the solution is.”

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Burning gas pollutes more than reported

That problem also extended to flaring, or the burning of excess natural gas in the oilfield, and technological improvements were also needed, according to another study published Sept. 29 by the University of Michigan in the journal Science.

That study – conducted through a partnership of U-M, Stanford and the EDF – looked at the prevalence of unlit or malfunctioning flares in the Permian, along with the Eagle Ford basin in southern Texas and the Bakken in North Dakota.

Scientists went on 13 flights over flares in the regions, studying how much methane they released, finding the practice released five times more methane that previously believed, largely when flares are unlit, and the gas is not burned as it is emitted.

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Flaring efficiency was at 91 percent, according to the report, compared with the 98 percent rate previously assumed.

Genevieve Plant, an author of the study and research scientist at U-M said like pipeline emissions, air pollution from flaring could be largely addressed through existing technology and better management by operators.

“This appears to be a source of methane emissions that seems quite addressable,” Plant said in a statement. “With management practices and our better understanding of what’s happening to these flares, we can reduce this source of methane in a tangible way.”

Last year, routine flaring was banned in New Mexico by its Oil Conservation Division, the main state agency that regulates the oil and gas industry, and EDF Director of Regulatory Affairs Jon Goldstein said the latest research made the case that such policy should be expanded nationwide by federal agencies.

The practice is often used as a safety measure in case of emergency to reduce well pressure, but environmentalists and critics of the oil and gas industry worried it was also used to remove unwanted gas from the supply chain.

“This study adds to the growing body of research that tells us that the oil and gas industry has a flaring problem,” Goldstein said. “The Environmental Protection Agency and Bureau of Land Management should implement solutions that can help to end the practice of routine flaring.”

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Gas pipelines, flares pollute air more than feds report, research shows