On May 20, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issued a final rule listing the dunes sagebrush lizard (“DSL”) as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”).1 The change in the DSL listing status, which...more
On May 14, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) published the final version of its revisions to the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (“GHGRP”) regulations for the oil and gas sector, often referred to as...more
New and additional bonding requirements for certain companies operating on the Outer Continental Shelf (“OCS”) will take effect in June as a result of a recent rulemaking. These new requirements will be phased in over a...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a host of new obligations for upstream and midstream oil and gas owners and operators. These new source performance standards (“NSPS”) and emission guidelines (“EG”) for...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released proposed and final rules that will regulate methane emissions from oil and gas operations, implement a methane emissions tax, and change greenhouse gas reporting...more
2/23/2024
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Events ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proposed Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published a proposed rule to assess and collect billions of dollars in methane “waste emission charges” from the oil and gas sector....more
The Biden administration has proposed changes regarding when oil, gas, and sulfur lessees and certain other parties operating in the offshore Outer Continental Shelf must post additional bonds or other “supplemental financial...more
Last November, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a regulatory preamble describing its plans for proposed standards to reduce methane emissions and other air pollutants from affected sources within the...more
11/25/2022
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Methane ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Wells ,
Popular ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
On March 28, 2022, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) published notice (“Notice”) that it is undertaking a formal review of Nationwide Permit (“NWP”) 12, one of over 50 general permits available nationwide that allow...more
EPA has received more than 300,000 comments on its November 2021 proposal to regulate methane from new and existing sources in the oil and gas production sector. We previously wrote about EPA’s proposal. Now we’ve analyzed a...more
On November 15, 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) published a proposed rule that included three separate actions under the Clean Air Act that target new and existing air emission sources at oil and natural gas...more
The first action proposes first-time emission guidelines to reduce methane emissions from almost 1 million existing oil and gas wells, almost 2,000 existing interstate natural gas compressor stations, and over 500 existing...more
11/5/2021
/ Air Pollution ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Methane ,
Natural Gas ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Storage Tanks ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
Join V&E environmental lawyers Matthew Dobbins, Corinne Snow, and Patrick Traylor as they host a CLE via webcast on the EPA’s new proposed rule for methane from the oil and gas sector, provide an update on air enforcement and...more
Join Vinson & Elkins for our eleventh annual seminar focusing on what you need to know about the most important evolving topics and the changing regulatory environment surrounding unconventional oil and gas...more
9/30/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Hydraulic Fracturing Study ,
Oil & Gas ,
Upstream Contracts ,
Webinars
In the upcoming weeks, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) is expected to release a proposed rule that would greatly expand methane regulations for the oil and gas sector. While EPA has previously issued regulations...more
9/27/2021
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Methane ,
Natural Gas ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
On April 29, 2021, the Senate passed a resolution (the “Resolution”) to disapprove a rule adopted by the Trump administration which lifted certain requirements that had been put in place by an Obama-era methane rule, also...more
5/3/2021
/ Barack Obama ,
Clean Air Act ,
Congressional Review Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Joe Biden ,
Methane ,
Natural Gas ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Trump Administration
As discussed in this previous post, the state of methane regulation for the oil and gas industry has been in flux over the past few years as federal regulations issued by the Obama administration were challenged in court and...more
4/2/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Air Act ,
Congressional Review Act ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Methane ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Obama Administration ,
Oil & Gas ,
Trump Administration ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
The Biden administration has signaled its intention to recriminalize non-purposeful, or incidental, “takes” of birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”). The longstanding debate over the scope of criminal liability...more
3/18/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Criminal Liability ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Renewable Energy ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wind Power
On January 27, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order — effective immediately — directing the Secretary of the Interior to pause new oil and natural gas leases on federal public lands or offshore waters to the extent...more
1/28/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
BOEM ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Leasing Regulations ,
Mineral Leases ,
Oil & Gas ,
Outer Continental Shelf ,
Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act ,
Secretary of the Interior ,
Tribal Lands
Join Vinson & Elkins for our tenth annual seminar discussing timely topics surrounding unconventional oil and gas development.
Our shale and hydraulic fracturing legal team will provide a comprehensive analysis of the...more
10/2/2020
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Energy Market ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Fracking ,
Oil & Gas ,
Shale Gas ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
As discussed in these two previous posts, EPA recently released two rules changing the volatile organic compound (“VOC”) and methane emissions requirements for new sources in the oil and gas sector, which alter or roll back...more
As discussed in this previous post, EPA recently released two rules changing the volatile organic compound (“VOC”) and methane emissions requirements for new sources in the oil and gas sector, which alter or roll back some of...more
On August 13, 2020, EPA released two rules changing the volatile organic compound (“VOC”) and methane emissions requirements for new sources in the oil and gas sector, which alter or roll back some of the requirements put in...more
9/2/2020
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Department of the Interior ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Methane ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
As discussed in this previous post, the federal government’s regulation of methane for the oil and gas industry — both from the Department of Interior on public land, and from EPA — continues to swing back and forth due to...more
The U.S. energy industry faces uncertain times. The triple hit of depressed oil and natural gas prices, reduced demand resulting from a global pandemic, and an economic recession have battered producers. Against the backdrop...more