While official results of the investigation have not yet been released, preliminary tests conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board have indicated that the blast was caused
by a natural gas leak from a 127 - year - old pipe.
Some scientists involved in this complex dispute still remain intrigued
by the natural gas leak rates found in some U.S. oil and gas fields.
Not exact matches
New research to re-examine distribution system
leak rates has been funded
by the Environmental Defense Fund as part of a larger project to quantify lost methane from the
natural gas system.
The jury remains out The
natural gas industry, represented by the American Gas Association, says the reported lost and unaccounted for percentages should not be used as a proxy for lea
gas industry, represented
by the American
Gas Association, says the reported lost and unaccounted for percentages should not be used as a proxy for lea
Gas Association, says the reported lost and unaccounted for percentages should not be used as a proxy for
leaks.
In both of those cities our team has mapped thousands of
natural gas leaks block
by block.
Conflicting numbers The study was funded
by a partnership of nine
natural gas producers and the Environmental Defense Fund, a non-profit environmental group based in Washington DC, as part of a broad effort to trace methane
leaks all the way from the wellhead to the user.
About a third of the factors used to estimate pipeline
leaks and other
natural gas emissions in the most recent inventory, for 2015, are based on a 1996 study by the EPA and an industry group then known as the Gas Research Institu
gas emissions in the most recent inventory, for 2015, are based on a 1996 study
by the EPA and an industry group then known as the
Gas Research Institu
Gas Research Institute.
Though focused on end uses of
natural gas, the paper also shows how results are affected
by highly uncertain
leak rates from
natural gas production and delivery.
For example,
natural gas companies add a smelly molecule called n - butyl mercaptan to
natural gas, which is odorless
by itself, so that people can sniff
gas leaks.
It is the main component of
natural gas, but
by 2014 there were mounting suspicions that a lot of it was
leaking or being vented into the air over the production fields, rather than being shipped off to market.
By the time Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) scientists Barry Freifeld and Curt Oldenburg visited the Aliso Canyon
natural gas storage facility in December 2015, the SS - 25 well blowout had been
leaking natural gas into the air for more than six weeks.
$ 8 billion) over first ten years for deficit reductionObeys PAYGO; Starting in 2026, 25 % of auction revenues for deficit reductionFuels and TransportationIncrease biofuels to 60 million gallons
by 2030, low - carbon fuel standard of 10 %
by 2010, 1 million plug» in hybrid cars
by 2025, raise fuel economy standards, smart growth funding, end oil subsidies, promote
natural gas drilling, enhanced oil recoverySmart growth funding, plug - in hybrids, raise fuel economy standards $ 7 billion a year for smart growth funding, plug - in hybrids,
natural gas vehicles, raise fuel economy standards; offshore drilling with revenue sharing and oil spill veto,
natural gas fracking disclosureCost ContainmentInternational offsetsOffset pool, banking and borrowing flexibility, soft price collar using permit reserve auction at $ 28 per ton going to 60 % above three - year - average market price» Hard» price collar between $ 12 and $ 25 per ton, floor increases at 3 % + CPI, ceiling at 5 % + CPI, plus permit reserve auction, offsets like W - MClean Air Act And StatesNot discussedOnly polluters above 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year, regional cap and trade suspended until 2017, EPA to set stationary source performance standards in 2016, some Clean Air Act provisions excludedOnly polluters above 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year, regional cap and trade pre-empted, establishes coal - fired plant performance standards, some Clean Air Act provisions excludedInternational CompetitivenessTax incentives for domestic auto industryFree allowances for trade - exposed industries, 2020 carbon tariff on importsCarbon tariff on importsReferences: Barack Obama, 2007; Barack Obama, 8/3/08; Pew Center, 6/26/09;
leaked drafts of American Power Act, 5/11/10.
The Bacharach uses two sensors to analyze methane
leaks: The first one measures
natural gas concentrations in the air between 0 and 5 percent, which are caused
by smaller
leaks, while the second sensor measures concentrations above 5 percent that are caused
by larger
leaks.
A NASA study has confirmed that the methane «hot spot» in the Four Corners region in the United States is caused
by leaks from
natural gas extraction.
The study, conducted
by researchers at Purdue and Cornell universities and other institutions, is one of numerous studies conducted over the past several years that have discovered methane
leaking from oil and
natural gas wells, pipelines and hydraulic fracturing operations.
Methane
leaks increase the climate impact of shale
gas, but whether the
leaks are sufficient to significantly alter the climate forcing
by total
natural gas development is uncertain [164].
The study, «Methane
Leaks from North American
Natural Gas Systems,» was led
by Adam Brandt of Stanford University's Precourt Institute for Energy.
(In a related development, Lawrence Cathles, an earth and atmospheric sciences professor at Cornell University, sent me a fresh rebuttal to the Op - Ed article on the contribution of
natural gas leaks to global warming
by his colleague, Anthony Ingraffea (earlier critiques are here).
Probably the warming climate was stimulating increased emissions from wetlands, while the rapid growth of
natural gas production
by hydraulic fracturing («fracking») was
leaking a sizable fraction into the atmosphere.
Although APS plans to reduce its coal burn from the current 35 % to 17 %
by 2029,
by increasing its
natural gas burn from 19 % to 35 %, it will actually increase its greenhouse
gas emissions in the near term, since the global warming potential from methane, which is
leaked at multiple points of the
natural gas supply chain, is 86 times that of carbon over 20 years, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's 2013 report.
By now, you may have heard about the massive
natural gas leak in Southern California, which has been ongoing since late October; then again, given the dearth of major media coverage, you very well may not have.
Methane from
natural gas leaks in oil and
gas production, for example, has a different signature from methane generated
by bacteria in a cow's stomach or similar methane - producing bacteria found in rice paddies or other wetlands.
; and that «the benefits of cleaner, more efficient combustion of
natural gas are largely offset
by methane leakage in U.S. production and pipelines and
by methane
leaks and energy used in the process of liquefying and transporting the LNG.»
Methane
leaks increase the climate impact of shale
gas, but whether the
leaks are sufficient to significantly alter the climate forcing
by total
natural gas development is uncertain [164].
AER scientists contributed atmospheric transport modeling and research expertise to the new study
by Harvard University, which is «the first of its kind to quantify methane emissions from
natural gas leaks in an urban area».
(For
gas midstream projects the emissions may be more significant, due to
leaks from pipelines and pump stations, as well as
by consumption of fuel used to liquefy the
natural gas for marine transport).
A string of studies
by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that the core ingredient in
natural gas, methane, is
leaking at rates far higher than previously suspected.
(1) No False Choices: To Preserve a Livable Climate, We Need to Slash Both CO2 and Methane ASAP; (2) Oil Change International Report: Fossil Fuel Production Subsidies Exceed $ 21 Billion Annually in United States, have increased
by 45 % under Obama's «All of the Above» energy policy; (3) Joint Economic Committee Hearing on «The Economic Impact of Increased
Natural Gas Production» (video); (4)
Leaked Trade Deal Document Shows EU Pressuring U.S. to Lift Crude Oil Export Ban; (5) Deep Decarbonization Pathways Project (DDPP) Presents Interim Report to UN Secretary - General Ban Ki - Moon.
A Stanford study finds that methane emissions from
natural gas leaks could be greatly reduced
by targeting «super emitters.»
The EPA tracks fugitive and vented methane emissions through a program called
Natural Gas STAR and then works to get drilling companies to save money by stanching their leaks and selling the gas they capture for prof
Gas STAR and then works to get drilling companies to save money
by stanching their
leaks and selling the
gas they capture for prof
gas they capture for profit.
While Colorado could still strengthen its rules — for example,
by requiring the immediate repair of
leaking equipment — the state is demonstrating to both the federal government and other states that
natural gas development can be improved without economic harm.
Voluntary measures to reduce methane
leaks have already increased
natural gas sales revenue
by more than $ 264 million, according to EPA.
More Articles on Fossil Fuels Blending Diesel with Biomass - Based Nylon Precursor Cuts Soot
by 50 % Because of Methane
Leaks,
Natural Gas Could be as Bad as Oil & Coal Uganda: Anything But
Gas Flaring, Please
Hence in this latter comparison, which primarily compares the effect of the CO2 and CH4 emitted
by these two sectors (and hence the
leak rate threshold decreases with a nearer - term perspective), even very small
leak rates would make the mean
natural gas plant as environmentally damaging as coal.
Explosions in the home or workplace caused
by leaking natural gas or propane
gas, and explosions caused
by chemical vapors or defective products are among the types of explosion accident cases handled
by our firm.
For example, the affidavit said that person A was in my office on July 31st of the past year and the person writing the affidavit reviews his files and finds that the office building was closed
by the fire department on that day due to a
natural gas leak.
Homeowners can also save between 5 and 20 percent on their premiums
by making changes to their homes that increase safety and security, such as installing new house wiring, protective roofing materials,
natural gas and water
leak detectors and burglary and emergency event alarm systems.
Examples of claims that are often overlooked can include: * Accidental holes in walls from moving furniture, trips and falls, etc * Accidental spills, stains, tears in carpeting or gouges in laminate or hardwood flooring * Broken windows from flying objects * Puff - back from
natural gas furnaces and water heaters * Undetected water damage from underneath cabinets, dishwashers, refrigerators, washing machines * Water pipes that are frozen, cracked,
leaking, or have burst * Smoke stained kitchen walls and ceilings from a dinner gone wrong * Bathroom water damage from an overflowing bathtub, sink, or toilet * Damaged stone, carpet, or tile from a popping fireplace * Damaged decks and siding due to flying play objects or having the bbq grill a little too close * Vandalism of any kind caused
by disgruntled former occupants or random strangers * Major damages from fire, wind, hail — yes, we do that too!