{"id":1079,"date":"2026-10-28T10:43:06","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T10:43:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/2026-10-28-epa-methane-proposal\/"},"modified":"2026-10-28T10:43:06","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T10:43:06","slug":"2026-10-28-epa-methane-proposal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/2026-10-28-epa-methane-proposal\/","title":{"rendered":"EPA proposes revising 2024 oil-and-gas methane rules, projects $45 billion in savings"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">EPA proposes revising 2024 oil-and-gas methane rules, projects $45 billion in savings<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Created:<\/strong> 2026-10-28T06:43:00-04:00 (America\/New_York)<br><strong>Last updated:<\/strong> 2026-10-28T06:43:00-04:00 (America\/New_York)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/fa-20261028-epa-16x9-1.jpg\" alt=\"EPA news release page announcing proposed revisions to oil and natural gas regulations, Oct. 27, 2026\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">EPA\u2019s Oct. 27, 2026 news release announcing the proposal (screenshot of epa.gov).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In Lubbock, Texas, on Oct. 27, President Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a proposed rule to revise the Biden administration\u2019s 2024 Clean Air Act standards for methane and other emissions from oil and gas operations (known as OOOOb\/c). Trump told the crowd, \u201cI\u2019m officially terminating Biden\u2019s expensive and unnecessary methane regulations\u201d (AP). The document itself is a proposal, which opens a public comment period; it does not end the rules. Most mainstream headlines led with \u201cclimate-warming\u201d methane and \u201cloosening\u201d for drillers; the specifics of what changes, and both sides\u2019 cost claims, got less room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What we can learn from primary-oriented reading<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Bottom line:<\/strong> A proposed rule, not a final one. EPA says comments will be open at least 45 days after Federal Register publication, with a public hearing.<\/li>\n<li><strong>What EPA says it would change:<\/strong> Rescind the Super Emitter Program (third-party reports of large leaks); create options for a separate category for low-producing \u201cmarginal\u201d and conventional wells; return to 95% flaring for associated gas; and give more time to repair covers and closed vent systems (EPA fact sheet).<\/li>\n<li><strong>The numbers:<\/strong> EPA projects $45 billion in cost savings, about 210 million additional barrels of oil, and 1.41 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. These are the agency\u2019s projections; the full regulatory impact analysis will be the place to test them, including forgone emissions reductions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Legal backdrop:<\/strong> Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton had sued over the 2024 rule (Politico). The 2024 standards were themselves the product of notice-and-comment rulemaking; reversing them requires the same process.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Where this sits:<\/strong> EPA; announced Oct. 27, 2026; Federal Register publication pending.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What questions the legacy media missed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Proposal vs. \u201cending\u201d:<\/strong> NPR\u2019s \u201cTrump says he\u2019s ending restrictions\u201d and Fox Business\u2019s \u201cend of Biden-era methane rule\u201d both echo Trump\u2019s word. Neither is accurate yet. The comment record \u2014 and likely litigation \u2014 come first.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Adjectives in headline voice:<\/strong> \u201cClimate-warming\u201d (AP\/NPR) and \u201cleakiest\u2026 off the hook\u201d (Grist) are framing choices. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas; the news is what the rule would change and at what cost.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The marginal-well question:<\/strong> The Hill noted the changes target low-producing wells that can emit a lot relative to output. That tradeoff \u2014 small operators\u2019 compliance costs versus leak rates \u2014 is the real policy debate, and few pieces quantified it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Whose numbers?<\/strong> The $45 billion figure is EPA\u2019s own projection, repeated in favorable headlines (Fox Business, Free Beacon) without independent review.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Venue and timing:<\/strong> Politico framed the event around the Texas Senate race. The announcement at a campaign stop a week before the midterms is a fair point to note; it does not change what the proposal contains.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Primary sources<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/newsreleases\/epa-proposes-major-new-revisions-burdensome-unworkable-biden-era-oil-and-natural-gas\" rel=\"noopener\">EPA news release, Oct. 27, 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/system\/files\/documents\/2026-10\/technical_factsheet_o-g_recon2_nprm_10.26.pdf\" rel=\"noopener\">EPA technical fact sheet on the proposed reconsideration (PDF)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How outlets framed it<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">Outlet headlines from today\u2019s scout \u2014 their words, not ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>NPR:<\/strong> \u201cTrump says he\u2019s ending restrictions on climate-warming methane from oil drilling\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>ABC News:<\/strong> \u201cTrump plans to loosen restrictions on methane emissions from oil drilling\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>The New York Times:<\/strong> \u201cE.P.A. Loosens Methane Rules for Oil Firms\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Grist:<\/strong> \u201cTrump\u2019s EPA is letting America\u2019s leakiest oil and gas companies off the hook\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Hill:<\/strong> \u201cTrump plans to loosen methane rules for low-producing, high-emitting oil wells\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Fox Business:<\/strong> \u201cTrump announces end of Biden-era methane rule, citing $45B in savings\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Washington Times:<\/strong> \u201cTrump to suspend Biden-era methane rule\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Headlines lead with \u201cclimate-warming\u201d methane or echo Trump\u2019s \u201cterminating\u201d; it is a proposal open for comment, and both sides\u2019 numbers need checking.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1079"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themedianow.net\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}