Cindy Nava Senate District 8 | Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has unveiled a section of the federal budget reconciliation bill that could have significant impacts on Americans, including cuts to Medicaid and programs designed to safeguard air and water quality. The committee is scheduled to review the legislation in a meeting tomorrow.
A notable aspect of this proposed legislation is the repeal of funding for the Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP) and a decade-long delay in implementing its Waste Emissions Charge. Established under the Inflation Reduction Act, MERP aims to curb methane waste and pollution from the oil and gas sector, complementing existing EPA methane standards. A key feature of MERP is its waste emissions charge, intended as an accountability measure for major oil and gas polluters, while also encouraging reductions in methane emissions through incentives.
MERP funds have been instrumental in states like New Mexico by enhancing leak monitoring with advanced systems, promoting zero-emission controllers among operators, and sealing 140 orphaned wells leaking pollutants for years or even decades. Eddy County in New Mexico is frequently listed among America's most smog-polluted areas by the American Lung Association. Maintaining MERP could continue benefiting environmental protection and public health.
Antoinette Reyes, Southern NM Organizer for the Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter, provided a statement regarding these developments:
