Shannon Van Hoesen, shannon.vanhoesen@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC - The House Energy and Commerce Committee released its portion of the federal budget reconciliation bill that will devastate Americans in a variety of ways, from gutting Medicaid to slashing programs that fight climate change and protect clean air and water. The legislation will be marked up in a committee meeting tomorrow.
This legislation includes a repeal of the Methane Emissions Reduction Program’s funding and the delay of the implementation of its Waste Emissions Charge for 10 years. Created by the Inflation Reduction Act, MERP is designed to reduce methane waste and pollution from the oil and gas industry and acts as a complement to EPA’s methane standards. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that is over 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at warming the planet during the first twenty years after its release. Reducing methane also helps cut down on other harmful pollution from oil and gas extraction, including smog-forming compounds and carcinogens like benzene.
The waste emissions charge, a key component of MERP, is a commonsense fee to incentivize the reduction of methane and other emissions by the largest polluters in order to safeguard the climate, improve public health, reduce waste, protect communities, and create jobs. In addition, funds from MERP are used to help states monitor leaks, aid in the deployment of technology to stop energy waste, and plug polluting oil and gas wells in order to protect the environment and public health.
In response, Sierra Club state chapters released the following statements:
Sierra Club Pennsylvania Chapter Director Tom Schuster said:
“States like Pennsylvania are working hard to hold oil and gas polluters accountable to clean up their mess, but more support is needed from the federal government to ensure corporations are good actors. MERP would allow Pennsylvania to waste less energy for consumers without an expansion of fracking, all the while ensuring less harmful pollution. It’s irresponsible and short-sighted to cut funding for this valuable program.”
Legislative and Conservation Director for the Lone Star Chapter (Texas) Cyrus Reed said:
“No state produces more oil and gas than Texas, or releases more climate disrupting methane emissions and associated pollution than the Lone Star state, and yet this proposal would undermine efforts to reduce this pollution by eliminating funding from MERP, which is designed to reduce methane waste and pollution from the oil and gas industry. This proposal leaves Texas’s frontline communities to rely on our state agencies, which so far have declined to enact any state level rules on methane pollution. Once again, political leaders in Washington have decided that protecting polluters is more important than supporting the people.”
Sierra Club Colorado Senior Government Affairs and Political Advocate Garrett Royer said:
“As the fourth largest oil and gas producing state, Colorado is no stranger to the need for both carrots and sticks when it comes to meaningfully reducing pollution from the fossil fuel sector. These companies rake in massive profits while harming communities in some of the most polluted areas. Cutting funding for MERP and effectively killing the waste emissions charge will hinder Colorado’s ability to reduce methane pollution that supercharges climate change and harms public health.”
Southern NM Organizer of the Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter Antoinette Reyes said:
“Federal and state oil and gas methane safeguards work hand in hand to protect our communities and their air. Now Congress wants to pull the rug out from our environmental justice communities before they even have a chance to realize any benefits. Ensuring dangerous oil and gas pollutants no longer jeopardize the health and safety of those living and working closest to extraction with the added benefit of many new, good-paying jobs anticipated in manufacturing, construction, operations, and much more. These safeguards have huge benefits like slowing climate change by reducing methane pollution is the fastest, most cost-effective way to do this. Oil and gas companies are the largest industrial source of methane, gutting MERP and delaying the waste emissions charge only serves to line the pockets of corporate polluters at the expense of protecting the health of New Mexicans.”
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.