Statement: EPA’s methane repeal would put polluters first and waste America's energy

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the rollback of the 2024 Methane Rule at a closed-door oil and gas industry conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico. According to Administrator Zeldin, the proposed rule will be released in a matter of days.

“Administrator Zeldin used an oil and gas industry event in New Mexico today to preview a damaging rollback of federal methane protections, including changes that would create huge loopholes for low-producing, high-polluting well sites, rescind the super-emitter program and weaken safeguards that cut waste and pollution from oil and gas operations," said Jon Goldstein, Associate Vice President, Energy Transition, Environmental Defense Fund.  "At a time when Americans are facing high energy costs, EPA should not give oil and gas companies more room to waste a domestic resource, adding to the nearly $7 billion in lost energy value since the Administration stopped enforcing key methane protections. Rolling back these safeguards would mean more wasted energy, more methane pollution and greater health risks for communities living near oil and gas operations.” 

The Trump administration's proposal to weaken methane standards has been in the works for some time. Methane is a climate super pollutant responsible for about 30% of the warming of our planet. Reducing methane emissions from oil and gas production is the fastest and most cost effective way to slow down the rate of climate change in our lifetime. 

On March 12^th, 2025, the Trump administration announced it would no longer enforce oil and gas methane regulations. Since that date, the oil and gas industry has leaked, vented or flared almost $7 billion-worth of natural gas. The administration also delayed core provisions in the standards, which EDF has challenged in court.  

The proposal outlined by EPA Administrator Zeldin today would slash regulations on low-producing well sites, which account for less than 5% of the nation's oil and gas supply but produce more than half of the industry's methane emissions. The vast majority of low-producing well sites are owned by large companies, and nearly half of all low-producing well sites are owned by just 72 companies that each operate over 1,000 well sites. 

The proposal allows additional flaring, which has serious health and climate impacts: in 2023 it was responsible for $5.6 billion in health and climate costs in the U.S. according to EDF research.  

The technologies needed to reduce methane emissions are proven, cost effective, and widely deployed throughout the oil and gas industry. Leak detection cameras, aerial and satellite monitoring, continuous monitoring systems and other mitigation technologies help operators identify leaks, reduce waste, and keep marketable gas in the pipeline 

Over the past decade, companies including bp, ExxonMobil, Equinor, Oxy and others have consistently supported durable methane standards at both the federal and state levels. The industry understands that well-designed rules developed with broad stakeholder input establish a level playing field, provide certainty, support long-term planning and reward innovation. 

Major oil and gas producing states, such as Colorado and New Mexico, already have strong protections in place for low-production wells and flaring, and are moving forward to implement other EPA standards. In fact, Colorado just became the first state to fully adopt the 2024 EPA methane standards into state regulations which were largely supported by two largest oil and gas trade associations in the state.  

The 2024 EPA methane standards were already delivering cleaner air to millions of people and meaningfully reducing the risk of severe weather such as wildfires, heat waves and floods fueled by climate change. These commonsense standards were developed with major input from community leaders, the oil and gas industry, investors, health experts, and members of Congress-- the Federal Register received over 900,000 comments in support of a strong 2024 Methane Rule.