President Trump announced in Texas his administration’s intention to scale back Biden-era federal requirements on methane emissions from oil and gas operations with goals of encouraging more domestic energy production and lower costs. The Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal would change leak-monitoring and flaring requirements, discontinue Biden’s “Methane Super Emitter Program,” and offer additional regulatory relief to low-output wells. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the changes could save $45 billion and support production of an additional 210 million barrels of oil and 1.41 trillion cubic feet of natural gas between 2027 and 2050.
The EPA is changing Biden-era rules that would have phased out some natural gas flaring–the burning off of excess gas during oil production. U.S. oil and gas producers sometimes flare the excess gas because pipeline capacity is not available to move the fuel to demand centers. They would much rather sell the natural gas, but pipelines may not exist. Lifting pipeline construction constraints would help alleviate flaring, because companies could sell the gas instead, providing a win-win solution.
The Biden-era Super Emitter Program would have created a system for third-party groups to report methane leaks from natural gas production, which would have had to be detected by satellites or special thermal imaging cameras. The Trump administration paused implementation of the program last year and, after review, now plans to eliminate it.
The regulation changes would also affect marginal wells that produce no more than 15 barrels of oil equivalent per day (also called stripper wells), accounting for about 7% to 8% of U.S. natural gas production. Smaller, independent oil producers have said compliance costs can overwhelm the economics of operating older wells, effectively forcing them to shut down. According to the National Stripper Well Association, “the costs associated with complying with these regulations will make the wells uneconomical to operate.” While shutting down low-producing wells could reduce methane emissions, the resulting loss of supply would likely lead to more coal use to replace the natural gas.
Methane emissions come not only from producing and transporting fossil fuels, but also from livestock, other agriculture, and decaying waste in landfills.
According to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, “Americans must be able to afford to heat their homes in the winter and fill up their car and drive to work. They can’t do that when the people producing the energy are weighed down by unnecessary burdens.”
Before the changes can take effect, they must go through an EPA rulemaking process that includes a public comment period. If the EPA implements a final rule, it could face legal challenges from environmental groups.
EU Methane Regulations
Several major oil companies have supported federal methane regulations, in part because they want to sell their fuels to countries implementing those rules. The European Union, for example, had planned to require foreign oil and gas suppliers to monitor and report methane emissions or pay penalties, with the rule taking effect on January 1, 2027. The EU’s position came after John Kerry, who was President Biden’s “Climate Envoy,” was dispatched by Biden to craft agreements to regulate methane. About a month ago, the Commission proposed a one-year delay. More recently, the European Parliament voted to postpone the rules for three years, and some EU governments are pushing national capitals to adopt a similar delay because of the energy situation caused by the conflict in Iran and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As energy affordability remains a central issue for governments and people worldwide, responsive governments are reducing regulatory burdens to aid consumers.
The EU responded to the United States and Qatar, both major LNG exporters, which have repeatedly said the methane regulation would hurt supply security and prices. The United States also warned that it will sell its oil and gas elsewhere if the bloc refuses to ease the regulations. According to Repsol SA, a Spanish energy and petrochemical company, about 90% of its crude oil supplies would breach EU law because suppliers would not agree to provide the information the regulation requires.
According to International Energy Agency analysis of updated Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement, as of early 2026, 141 countries had submitted NDC updates. Methane is included in the scope of essentially all of them, but only around 20 set out specific measures to cut emissions from fossil fuel operations, and just five include quantitative targets for those reductions. Separately, the Global Methane Pledge—a voluntary collective commitment launched at COP26 by the United States and the European Union to reduce global methane emissions at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030—now has 159 participating countries plus the European Commission. The U.N. Environment Program’s latest assessment shows that methane emissions have not fallen (and are still rising) since the Pledge launched, with current policies and commitments falling well short of the 30% target.
Conclusion
President Trump announced his intention to change Biden-era methane emission regulations. The Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal would relax leak-monitoring and flaring requirements, discontinue the Biden Methane Super Emitter Program, and offer additional regulatory relief to low-output wells. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the changes could save $45 billion and support production of an additional 210 million barrels of oil and 1.41 trillion cubic feet of natural gas between 2027 and 2050. The U.N.’s latest assessment shows methane emissions have not fallen in the five years since countries pledged to reduce them by 30% by 2030. In fact, as energy affordability remains a central issue for governments and people worldwide, responsive governments are taking steps to reduce regulatory burdens.
