Menu
Apr 3, 2019

EPA Risk Management Plan Rule Update

EPA Risk Management Plan

After losing a case in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on its attempt to delay the effective date of the Obama-era final rule strengthening EPA’s Risk Management Plan (RMP) facility accident prevention program, EPA issued a proposed rule last Fall largely scrapping the Obama-era rule’s requirements. However, EPA has not yet issued a final rule, yet it was compelled to comply with the mandate of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that invalidated its attempted delay of the Obama-era rule’s effective date. As a result, in December, EPA published a final rule in the Federal Register that the January… Read more


Sep 19, 2018

EPA Proposes Changes to Regulations on Methane Emissions

Methane Emissions

On September 11, the EPA proposed changes to an Obama-era rule on methane emissions to give oil and gas companies more time between inspections of drilling equipment and to repair methane gas leaks. Industry groups opposed the 2016 rule, which required energy companies to conduct leak inspections on their drilling equipment as regularly as every six months, as being overly burdensome. Under the EPA’s new proposal, energy companies would perform leak inspections at least once a year, in most cases, and every two years for low-producing oil and gas wells. Oil and gas drillers are currently required to fix methane… Read more