Hidden Menace: Massive methane leaks speed up climate change

LENORAH, Texas — To the naked eye, the Mako Compressor Station outside the dusty West Texas crossroads of Lenorah appears unremarkable, similar to tens of thousands of oil and gas operations scattered throughout the oil-rich Permian Basin. Last October, AP journalists visited more than two dozen sites flagged as persistent methane super emitters by Carbon Mapper with a FLIR infrared camera and recorded video of large plumes of hydrocarbon gas containing methane escaping from pipeline compressors, tank batteries, flare stacks and other production infrastructure. In addition to West Texas Gas’s Mako site, AP observed a large plume of gas escaping from tanks at a WTG compressor station about 15 miles away in the Sale Ranch oil field. “Reducing air emissions from the oil and natural gas sector is a top priority for the administration and for EPA,” said Tomás Carbonell, EPA’s deputy assistant administrator for stationary sources. Methane, he added, is “helping drive impacts that communities across the country are already seeing every day, including heat waves and wildfires and sea level rise.” But proposed rules to address emissions most oil and gas sites are still under review, and if implemented will likely face legal challenges.