Speaking at a campaign rally in Texas, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that his administration is eliminating a Biden-era regulation designed to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas facilities.
Trump stated that rolling back the rule would deliver billions in savings for businesses and consumers while making 210 million barrels of oil available—an amount roughly equivalent to 10 days of U.S. oil consumption. The administration positioned the decision as a push to stimulate domestic energy production as the president navigates criticism over elevated fuel prices linked to the ongoing war in Iran.
Scientific estimates indicate that methane accounts for roughly one-third of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. As the primary component of natural gas, methane is far more potent than carbon dioxide in trapping heat in the near term, with oil and gas operations serving as the largest industrial source of the colorless gas.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin previously signaled the shift, noting that the agency would dismantle its “Super Emitter Program”—which required companies to track and resolve major leaks—and establish less stringent standards for small oil and gas wells.
Addressing a crowd in Lubbock for Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton, Trump argued that the prior administration’s framework disproportionately penalized smaller operators with burdensome mandates.
”I’m officially terminating Biden’s expensive and unnecessary methane regulations to save consumers and energy producers $45 billion in costs,” Trump said.
The rollback aligns with a broader congressional and executive push by Republicans to dismantle climate policies enacted under former President Joe Biden.
Previous rollbacks have included relaxing vehicle fuel economy standards, overturning foundational scientific determinations on greenhouse gases, and lifting emission caps for coal and natural gas power plants.
Environmental organizations sharply criticized the decision, warning that it grants fossil fuel companies a free pass to release gases that could otherwise be captured to power homes.
”EPA should be fighting this waste, not making it easier,” said Environmental Defense Fund President Fred Krupp.
The finalized Biden regulation, introduced alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris at the 2023 U.N. climate summit in the United Arab Emirates, aimed to prevent an estimated 58 million tons of methane emissions by 2038.
Proponents projected it would generate $98 billion in public health and environmental benefits by 2034—a metrics system based on the “social costs” of emissions that Trump’s EPA has dismissed.