Court strikes down Trump administration's methane rollback

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/507647-court-strikes-down-trump-administrations-methane-rollback

By Rachel Frazin - 07/16/20 11:09 AM EDT

A federal court late Wednesday struck down a Trump administration rule that weakened restrictions on methane gas releases from drilling on public land, restoring an Obama-era rule.

In 2018, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rolled back parts of the prior rule that limited the release of the greenhouse gas. The change was expected to allow for more methane leaks in a process called flaring and add to air pollution.

On Wednesday, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers determined that the rulemaking process used by the BLM was “wholly inadequate.”

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