Dana Wood, Vice President of Environmental Compliance and Consulting, delivered a detailed briefing on the latest federal methane regulations to members of the Western Energy Alliance on September 11, 2025.

Wood’s presentation, “U.S. Regulatory Update – Where to Focus,” outlined how the Inflation Reduction Act’s Methane Emissions Reduction Program and a wave of 2024 federal rules are reshaping compliance priorities across the oil and gas sector. She walked industry leaders through the most significant updates, including:

• EPA’s NSPS OOOOb and EG OOOOc targeting new and existing source methane emissions.
• Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Subpart W updates, expanding reporting to sources such as combustion slip, crankcase venting, and drilling mud degassing.
• The Waste Emissions Charge (WEC), which places a cost on excess methane emissions.
• PHMSA’s Pipeline Leak Detection and Repair Rule and BLM’s updated Waste Prevention Rule, both tightening expectations on monitoring and control.
• SEC’s Climate Disclosure Rule, requiring companies to enhance reporting of climate-related risks.

Wood also emphasized that enforcement remains vigorous. In 2024, EPA concluded 19 enforcement cases in oil and gas alone, imposing $72 million in penalties. Observed violations ranged from unlit or smoking flares to tank leaks and failures in closed vent systems.  These enforcement case all began between 2015 and 2019.

Her key message: compliance strategies must balance proactive data collection, targeted risk reduction, and practical enforcement awareness. “Enforcement does not go away with a change in administration,” Wood noted, stressing the need to focus on the highest-risk, easiest-to-enforce issues such as unlit flares and tank leaks.

The session provided Alliance members with actionable insights to navigate a fast-evolving regulatory landscape, underscoring the importance of aligning operations with both current rules and anticipated enforcement priorities.