EPA proposes to hammer oil and natural gas with crazy new climate rules

[rangerrebew]

EPA proposes to hammer oil and natural gas with crazy new climate rules
By David Wojick |December 10th, 2021|Climate, Energy|247 Comments

EPA has posted a massive proposed rule making targeting the oil and natural gas industry, calling it a “climate review”.

The full title is “Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review”

The URL for commenting is here:

https://www.regulations.gov/document/EPA-HQ-OAR-2021-0317-0001

EPA has included a lot of tricky stuff in how the proposal is made. First, this is what is called a “holiday rule making” which EPA is famous for. The comment period is just 60 days long and it spans the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year holidays.

Second, most major proposals consist of just a few documents. Typically just the proposal itself plus a technical support document or two. In this case there are a whopping 184 different documents, with no time to read them all.

https://www.cfact.org/2021/12/10/epa-proposes-to-hammer-oil-and-natural-gas-with-crazy-new-climate-rules/

[catfish1957]

After doing this for a living 30 years, these are the first proposed EPA regulations I have looked after 10 years of retirement.

All I needed to see is that the EPA has now promulagated NSPS to the level of Subpart OOOO.  That means there are now approaching near 100 specific process specific standards for new equipment and operation.  Honestly, without looking it up, I'd have a hard time thinking of 100 industries that emit VOC's.

I always felt even back then, that if EPA wanted to eliminate our and their jobs, they could enact standards and enforcement parameters that would force industry overseas.  One way to do it, is to force plants to invoke leakless technology on every single flange, valve, pump, and compressor.  Even down to the 1/4 inch size. 

Plants already have to self report air violations under Title V, so add the possibility of upping the fines 10X per occurence......   It will be no problem at all for the EPA to Biden's dirty work in forcing industries out of the U.S.

[rangerrebew]

Maybe the EPA will hire Chinese tech firms to monitor everything.

[catfish1957]

Maybe the EPA will hire Chinese tech firms to monitor everything.

I heard places like CA make plants (at their expense) build towers, and install dozens of FLIR Cameras around the periphery of their property for self monitoring and reporting of any suspicious looking dark camera wisps that shows up.

That capital expenditure along (again depending on size of facility) could run several millions of dollars.

So basically at least in the "air' field, agencies have pretty much in a lot of cases, forced plants to self monitor and report.   Not so much yet in the water and waste areas.