May 12 - Environmentalists Cheer & Extractive Industry Stakeholders Balk At New Federal Methane Rule

The Obama administration today unveiled new regulations governing reductions in methane pollution by the oil and gas industry. And Bloomberg reports the new rules are even tougher than those proposed in August 2015, to the tune of about 530 million dollars in up-front costs to extractive industries. Stakeholders in oil and gas production, including the New Mexico State Land Office, have come out against the rules, while environmentalists and Federal officials say the benefits—both environmental and economic—will outweigh the costs over the next ten years. KSFR’s Kate Powell talked to representatives from the Land Office and the regional chapter of the Sierra Club, who have two very different takes on the new regulations.