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Methane emissions from US low production oil and natural gas well sites

Environmental Studies and Forestry

Methane emissions from US low production oil and natural gas well sites

M. Omara, D. Zavala-araiza, et al.

Discover how low production oil and gas well sites, despite comprising 80% of US sites, are responsible for a staggering amount of methane emissions. Research conducted by Mark Omara, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, David R. Lyon, Benjamin Hmiel, Katherine A. Roberts, and Steven P. Hamburg reveals the critical need for targeted mitigation efforts to tackle these disproportionate emission sources.

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Playback language: English
Abstract
Low production oil and gas (O&G) well sites, comprising 80% of US sites but producing only 6% of output, are identified as disproportionately large methane (CH₄) emission sources. Analysis integrating national site-level O&G production data with CH₄ measurement data (n=240) reveals these sites emit over 4 Tg CH₄, exceeding emissions from the Permian Basin. Low production sites account for roughly half of all O&G well site CH₄ emissions, exhibiting a production-normalized CH₄ loss rate exceeding 10%, significantly higher than the overall US average. Mitigation efforts targeting low production sites are crucial for substantial CH₄ emission reductions.
Publisher
Nature Communications
Published On
Apr 19, 2022
Authors
Mark Omara, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, David R. Lyon, Benjamin Hmiel, Katherine A. Roberts, Steven P. Hamburg
Tags
methane emissions
low production oil and gas
CH₄ emissions
well sites
emission reduction
environmental impact
oil and gas production

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