This week, Colorado’s U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper and a bipartisan majority of Senators voted to reverse the Trump Administration’s rollback of methane pollution limits from oil and gas drilling. The vote reinstates Obama-era limits on methane pollution, which were modeled after the “gold standard” that Hickenlooper pioneered as Governor of Colorado.
The Senate reversed the Trump Administration rule using the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to undo certain regulations enacted at the end of a previous presidential administration. Hickenlooper presided over the Senate for the vote.
“In Colorado, we brought together environmentalists and the oil industry to take the first steps toward eliminating methane. Our work became the national standard,” said Hickenlooper. “Despite the Trump administration’s rollback, we’re reinstating those limits with bipartisan support. Today’s vote is a win for clean air and a model for what we can accomplish together if we commit to tackling the climate crisis.”
Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas, roughly 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. A new U.N. report found that reducing methane emissions is key to stemming the effects of climate change and protecting public health.
Hickenlooper is a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.