Drilling rigs
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In an effort to curb emissions and prevent waste of taxpayer dollars, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on Friday announced its long-awaited draft rule regarding methane pollution on public lands.

The draft rule will slash the venting, flaring, and leaking of methane — the main component in natural gas — from new and existing oil and gas operations on public lands. It will do so by requiring the oil and gas industry to take measures to reduce the instances of venting and flaring and to plug leaks through equipment upgrades. The rule is expected to reduce both venting and flaring by at least 41 percent and could prevent up to 169,000 tons of methane emissions per year.

The rule is considered a key component of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan.

“I think most people would agree that we should be using our nation’s natural gas to power our economy — not wasting it by venting and flaring it into the atmosphere,” said Interior Secretary Sally Jewell in […]