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Pennsylvania finalizes permits meant to cut methane emissions from gas industry

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Pennsylvania finalizes permits meant to cut methane emissions from gas industry

As part of its effort to reduce emissions of methane and other pollutants, Pennsylvania officials finalized changes to the state's permitting processes for new natural gas processing and transmission plants along pipelines as well as new unconventional gas wells.

Gov. Tom Wolf and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, or DEP, Secretary Patrick McDonnell on June 6 announced the implementation of general permits, GP-5 and GP-5A, designed to reduce emissions of methane from gas operations.

In addition to the methane controls, the permits also set thresholds on other types of air pollution, such as volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides. Under the new regulations, operators will be required to meet federal new source standards and state best available technology requirements for equipment and processes to control emissions.

The regulations, which are set to go into effect on Aug. 8, have garnered praise from environmental groups but raised the ire of the oil and gas industry, which contends they are unnecessary and will stifle growth of the energy industry in the state.

While the regulations only pertain to new sources of emissions, Wolf has committed to mark further reductions by tackling emissions from the thousands of existing oil and gas sites across the state, a move hailed by the Environmental Defense Fund, or EDF, in a statement on Thursday. "According to a recent EDF analysis, these oil and gas facilities emit approximately 520,000 tons of methane every year — five times more than what companies report to the state," the EDF said.

The environmental group argued that cost-effective technologies already exist to control methane emissions, and it cited a recent analysis by the International Energy Agency that found that oil and gas operators could cut 40% to 50% of emissions at no net cost to operations.

Dave Spigelmyer, president of industry group the Marcellus Shale Coalition, said steps the state's oil and gas industry has taken on its own to combat emissions of methane, the main component of natural gas, already have improved air quality. "Despite this positive and continued progress, we remain concerned about imposing additional requirements through operating permits, particularly those that exceed DEP's statutory authority," he said in an email statement.

The DEP had held several comment periods on the proposed regulations. During an initial comment period, the agency received about 10,000 comments, many from industry-friendly groups complaining that the draft permits as initially proposed were too proscriptive, especially in regard to drilling activity that resulted in methane releases that were only temporary.

Jim Magill is a reporter for S&P Global Platts, which, like S&P Global Market Intelligence, is owned by S&P Global Inc.