Trump Holds Events in Highest Polluting Oil & Gas Region to Boast About Environmental Rollbacks

(AUSTIN, TX) President Trump will hold a series of events tomorrow in the West Texas cities of Odessa and Midland, the heart of the most highly polluting oil and gas region in the country, where he is expected to promote his administration’s ongoing efforts to roll back fundamental air, water and other pollution standards for the oil and gas industry.  

The latest item on that agenda is the Environmental Protection Agency’s elimination of key safeguards designed to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry — a move that could result in an additional 5 million metric tons of methane pollution released into the atmosphere each year, and would effectively end federal standards for all air pollution from oil and gas pipelines and storage facilities nationwide. Over 100,000 Americans live within half a mile of active oil and gas wells in the tri-county area around Midland and Odessa. 

“It’s ironic that the president is coming to the highest polluting oil and gas region in the country to brag about slashing basic environmental safeguards. Weakening standards will only slow the recovery prospects for an industry facing strong competition from cleaner, more efficient resources. That’s why investors, customers and even many in industry are calling for stronger rules, not weaker ones.”

• Matt Watson, Vice President, Energy, Environmental Defense Fund

Video and photos of methane emissions from the local area are available here.