Pa. Plans to Regulate Methane from Drilling Industry

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf's administration will impose new regulations on methane released from the drilling industry as part of the state's aggressive campaign to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection will revise its permitting process for new gas wells and pipelines by the end of 2016 and will also submit new regulations on methane from existing sources, the Democratic governor and DEP Secretary John Quigley said during a town hall meeting broadcast over Facebook yesterday.

"We're uniquely positioned to be a national leader in addressing climate change while supporting and ensuring responsible energy development, creating new jobs and protecting public health and our environment," Wolf said.

Pennsylvania has become the second-biggest natural gas producer after Texas in the last decade, as new technology made it possible to drill into the Marcellus Shale formation.

Wolf took office last year promising to reduce the environmental impacts from drilling, while still allowing the industry to prosper.  The DEP has also said Pennsylvania will be among the first states to meet its emissions reduction goals under U.S. EPA's Clean Power Plan.

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