By: Lucia Valentine, West Virginia Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: February 12, 2024
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0434
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Thank you for the opportunity to testify. My name is Lucia Valentine and I am the West Virginia Field Organizer for Moms Clean Air Force. I am from Shepherdstown, West Virginia and have lived in the mountain state my whole life. I strongly support the Methane Emissions Reduction Program and the need to cut methane and other harmful pollutants from oil and gas operations across the country. By ensuring oil and gas operators comply with federal methane standards and take action now to reduce emissions, this program is an important step towards addressing the climate crisis and protecting the health and safety of children and families across the country.
Reducing methane pollution is the fastest, most cost-effective way to immediately slow our current rate of global warming, and oil and gas companies are the largest industrial source of methane. Methane is responsible for 25% of the man-made global warming we are experiencing today. Warmer temperatures caused by climate change will make air pollution worse, putting the health of West Virginia’s children at risk.
Climate change is already impacting our families and communities in West Virginia. We’re seeing firsthand the effects of climate instability on our most vulnerable populations — children, older adults, pregnant women, those whose health is compromised, communities of color and low-income communities. West Virginia is one of the most at-risk states for flood disasters in the country, and the increase in frequency and severity of flooding can be directly tied to the warming that is being caused by greenhouse gases.
The Methane Emissions Reduction Program’s waste emissions charge, which was mandated by Congress in the Inflation Reduction Act, is a commonsense fee that will hold the nation’s largest oil and gas polluters accountable for excessive climate pollution.
The fee also incentivizes companies to take action now to reduce emissions. In fact, many forward-thinking companies are already retrofitting well sites with zero-emission equipment. Leading companies have already pledged to limit emissions below the waste emissions charge’s pollution thresholds and would avoid being subjected to the fee if those commitments are met.
New analysis released by Earthworks and FracTracker shows that more than 17.3 million people, including 3.9 million children under 18 reside within a half-mile health threat radius of active oil and gas production operations.
The study also finds that of the 10 million people living within a ½ mile of an oil and gas well:
- 1.5 million live below the poverty line;
- 1.5 million are seniors; and
- 645,400 are young children.
Quickly and significantly reducing methane pollution is one of the best levers we have to slow the rate of climate change now and help clean up the air to protect children’s health. Moms Clean Air Force is grateful for the work of the Biden Administration and EPA to finalize methane standards last year, and the Methane Emissions Reduction Program will help ensure that federal standards are met as we work to implement the EPA methane rule. There is no time to waste and this program will help reduce the impacts of methane pollution on our climate and families in West Virginia and beyond. Thank you.