The Environmental Defense Fund has launched an initiative to gather data on methane emissions in the US' largest onshore oilfield, the prolific Permian basin of Texas and New Mexico.
The US-based nonprofit aims to measure and map out the scale of methane escaping from oil and gas operations in the Permian over the course of the year-long project.
The EDF intends to use tower monitors at fixed locations as well as mobile readings taken both on the ground and in the air, to "fill urgent gaps in the public understanding of emissions," the organisation said.
In addition, the study will incorporate remote sensing and satellite data sets collected by other researchers "in order to achieve the most robust measurements possible".
The first field measurements are to take place in November, and the first release of data is expected early next year.
Concern over emissions in the Permian has grown as flaring of associated gas has ballooned along with oil production. A recent EDF report concluded that Texas Permian producers flared nearly twice as much natural gas as they reported to the state’s oil and gas regulator in 2017.
The EDF hopes that the emissions study will help operators and regulators better understand the problem and find effective solutions.
"The data gathered here will better define the scope of the methane problem in the Permian and provide much-needed information so that companies, public officials and local communities can better manage emissions," said Matt Watson, vice president Energy at EDF.
According to the organisation, cutting emissions "is often as simple as tightening valves, closing tanks that have been inadvertently left open, or relighting flares. Science shows that the biggest emissions tend to come in random, unpredictable ways, which means proactive, regular monitoring is among the best reduction strategies."
The study will also include a host of science and technology partners such as Pennsylvania State University, the University of Wyoming, and Scientific Aviation. Researchers from the University of Michigan, Stanford University and Canada's McGill University will act as independent scientific advisors.
