The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will soon release a rollback of the 2024 new source performance standards for new, reconstructed, and modified sources of methane in the oil and gas industry. Those standards required oil and gas companies to monitor and prevent methane leaks. Methane is a greenhouse gas many times more potent than carbon dioxide and is one of the largest contributors to climate change.

Ahead of the release, the BlueGreen Alliance released a statement from Executive Director Jason Walsh:

“Once again, the Trump administration proves that it doesn’t care at all about the health, safety, and future of working families. Methane, and the other dangerous air pollutants released along with it, creates a huge public health risk to workers and communities surrounding the oil and gas sites. The technology to plug these leaks is available and cost effective. Rolling back these standards is a deliberate decision to deprioritize public health.”