Kim Anderson: Reducing methane is morally right

“Honey, should we fix the natural gas leaks in our home?”

“No, sweetheart, we just won’t light any matches and put up signs saying, NO SMOKING ALLOWED.”

Does this conversation between spouses sound like a responsible course of action? This is exactly the course of action that our commonwealth has chosen by not fixing dangerous leaks and emissions from the industry’s natural gas infrastructure. It is well past time to fix these emissions that spew dangerous pollution, yet the current regulation being finalized by the Wolf administration addresses only half the problem.

Pennsylvania’s gas operators emit 1 million tons of methane every year — more than 16 times than reported to the Department of Environmental Protection. With these methane emissions come other air pollutants, like volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are underreported by 60,501 tons. That is over 21 times the amount reported (63,500 tons emitted to 2,999 tons reported). Over half of these emissions come from low producing and conventional wells not covered in the proposed standard — a major loophole that harms our kids.

As pro-life evangelicals, we have a special concern for the unborn. We want children to be born healthy and unhindered by the ravages of pollution. The medical community has long known of the environmental impacts on our unborn children. Studies have shown that smog, VOCs and air toxics have a disproportionate impact upon life in the womb. Leaks from natural gas production and transportation spew out smog precursors, as well as other toxic pollutants and cancer-causing agents like benzene. Children living near production and distribution sites are at risk for birth defects and early, pre-term births.

At least 84% of published medical studies surveyed describe health impacts from natural gas infrastructure.

Pennsylvania already has over 257,803 children with asthma, according to the American Lung Association, and approximately 10% of those kids call Allegheny County home. Allegheny County’s foul air fails in both ozone (smog) and particulates (soot) emissions making the need to stop natural gas emissions urgent.

These leaks threaten our most vulnerable populations and add to climate disruption. We want our loved ones, childre, and those yet to be born to have a world free of climate change. Yet today, in our natural gas infrastructure, large amounts of methane are being released, a climate pollutant 86 times stronger than carbon dioxide at trapping heat over a 20 year time frame.

And it is what we do over the next 10 years that will decide whether our struggle to overcome climate change will be won or lost. That is why reducing methane is morally strategic.

For these reasons, 28,596 pro-life Pennsylvania Christians submitted comments to the Department of Environmental Protection. Their request states:

“As pro-life Christians, we want the air that we breathe to be safe for our children. Leaks in our natural gas infrastructure spew out toxic pollutants that place God’s creation and our families — especially children, pregnant mothers and the unborn — in harm’s way. We support Governor Wolf and Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection new standard, Control of VOC Emissions from Oil and Natural Gas Sources to defend our children.

We encourage DEP to move forward for the safety of children and strengthen the standard by limiting loopholes for low-producing wells that are responsible for more than half of the methane pollution and requiring regular inspections for all facilities.”

Research states that approximately 80% of the natural gas leaks result from 30% of the facilities. That suggests that many producers already see the value in minimizing leaks and production losses. Escaping natural gas can’t make a profit, but it can be extremely toxic and of immeasurable damage to our children’s health.

For far too long our kids, both born and unborn, have been living with the “lit match” threatening their health and lives. Gov. Tom Wolf and Pennsylvania’s DEP can end the threat by blowing out the match with a complete VOC/methane standard without loopholes.

Jesus calls us to defend “the least of these.” We cannot do anything less. These leaks threaten our most vulnerable populations and add to climate disruption. We want our loved ones, children and those yet to be born to have a world free of climate change. Yet today, in our natural gas infrastructure, large amounts of methane are being released, a climate pollutant 86 times stronger than carbon dioxide at trapping heat over a 20 year timeframe.

And it is what we do over the next 10 years that will decide whether our struggle to overcome climate change will be won or lost. That is why reducing methane is morally strategic.

Kim Anderson of Ebensburg is a field organizer for Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio for the Evangelical Environmental Network.