Strong methane standards for oil and gas industry would create up to 220,000 American jobs, new CATF report finds
A new Clean Air Task Force (CATF) report finds strong regulations to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector would support up to 220,000 high-quality U.S.-based jobs.
The report, Good Rules, Good Jobs: Employment Opportunities from Emissions Standards for Oil and Gas, analyzed the November 2021 EPA methane proposal and found it would create 92,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs across the country. The report also concludes that if the agency strengthened leak detection and repair, pneumatic equipment replacement, and tank and compressor controls policies as described in CATF’s 65% methane reduction plan, 220,000 total jobs will be created.
“Strong methane standards are not only good for the environment, but also good for the economy, supporting American jobs across the supply chain,” says Lesley Feldman of Clean Air Task Force. “Reducing methane emissions is one of the best strategies we have to slow the rate of global warming right now, and this new report shows that this approach would provide co-benefits to local economies. These high-quality, good paying jobs would result from cost-effective, proven technologies and practices that we have available right now, such as leak detection and repair, pneumatic equipment replacement, and installing tank and compressor pollution controls. Strong methane regulations are a triple win: a win for the environment, a win for the economy, and a win for public health.”
The findings complement a recently released CATF report, Fossil Fumes, that found nearly 14 million people across the U.S. are at an increased risk for cancer as a result of air pollution at oil and gas facilities. Strong methane standards — like those proposed by EPA, and the stronger standards in CATF’s 65% methane plan — would have immense environmental, public health, and economic benefits.
The full report, Good Rules, Good Jobs: Employment Opportunities from Emissions Standards for Oil and Gas, can be found here, including a state-by-state comparison of jobs created through both EPA and CATF’s plans, as well as details of jobs for each mitigation practice and specific occupations.
Methane is a harmful super pollutant that warms the planet more than 80 times more than carbon dioxide over its first 20 years in the atmosphere. It’s responsible for about half a degree Celsius of global warming so far, and its levels are rising fast. To learn more about methane and CATF’s work to reduce methane emissions, visit https://www.catf.us/methane/.
Press Contact
Samantha Sadowski, Communications Manager, U.S., ssadowski@catf.us, +1 202-440-1717
About Clean Air Task Force
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
