Proposed new limits, intended to combat global warming, potentially affect numerous oil and gas operations.

On September 18, 2015, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new limits on emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds (VOC) for oil and natural gas operations, including production, processing, transmission and storage. The proposal adds methane standards for certain new, modified and reconstructed sources currently regulated for VOC, and methane and VOC standards for currently unregulated sources. EPA cites the global warming potential of methane as the primary justification for establishing new standards for this pollutant.