HOUSE MEMORIAL 51

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2018

INTRODUCED BY

Angelica Rubio and Stephanie Garcia Richard

 

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE NEW MEXICO LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TO DIRECT THE INTERIM LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE THAT STUDIES WATER AND NATURAL RESOURCES ISSUES TO REVIEW DATA ON THE AMOUNT OF NATURAL GAS BEING VENTED AND FLARED IN NEW MEXICO AND THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF METHANE GAS CAPTURE PLANS.

 

     WHEREAS, venting and flaring of natural gas by oil and gas operators in New Mexico contribute to the waste of limited energy resources and deprive the state of a needed source of revenue; and

     WHEREAS, methane waste includes intentional emissions, or venting; equipment leaks, or fugitive emissions; and the combustion of methane, or flaring; and

     WHEREAS, a majority of the methane waste occurs from oil and gas wells that operate on federal and state trust lands; and

     WHEREAS, there is conflicting data on the volume of methane emissions from oil and gas production in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, for example, a report released in November 2017 by the nonprofit environmental defense fund estimates that the overall venting, leaking and flaring of natural gas in New Mexico results in a loss of one hundred eighty-two million dollars ($182,000,000) to two hundred forty-four million dollars ($244,000,000) worth of natural gas each year; and

     WHEREAS, the report states that taxpayers and the state budget are losing up to twenty-seven million dollars ($27,000,000) in taxes and royalties per year; and

     WHEREAS, the secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources reported in November 2017 that methane emissions from oil and natural gas production in New Mexico had dropped by more than fifty percent over the past year due to advances in technology and changes in the way wells are drilled; and

     WHEREAS, information provided by the energy, minerals and natural resources department states that vented and flared methane made up just over one percent of New Mexico's total natural gas production; and

     WHEREAS, the taxes and royalty revenues from captured methane waste could have a significant positive impact on the state and county budgets; and

     WHEREAS, additional information is needed to determine the levels of methane emissions from oil and gas and the possible tax and royalty revenue that could be realized from the capture of methane that is burned off or vented directly into the air at drilling sites on public land;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the New Mexico legislative council be requested to direct the interim legislative committee that studies water and natural resources issues to review data on the amount of natural gas being vented and flared in New Mexico and the economic benefits of methane gas capture plans; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the interim legislative committee determine whether legislation to address the issue of capturing vented and flared gas would be necessary for consideration by the first session of the fifty-fourth legislature; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the co-chairs of the New Mexico legislative council, the secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources, the executive director of the environmental defense fund and the secretary of finance and administration.

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