Essay by Eric Worrall
A former army officer is leading a green lawfare attack on gas extraction companies.
Methane leaks are supercharging the climate crisis — here’s what we must do, now
BY RUSSEL L. HONORÉ, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 12/31/24 12:00 PM ET
In the fight against climate change, the focus is usually on carbon dioxide, or CO2 — and for good reason. It’s a greenhouse gas that remains in the atmosphere for years, trapping in heat for generations to come. Yet there is an even more potent planet-warming gas whose destructive powers have long gone hidden — until now.
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The fossil fuel industry has been drilling and refining oil and its byproducts for over 150 years, and it has left behind a legacy of pollution and dodged accountability. So-called “orphaned” wells, or wells that have been abandoned by the oil companies that originally drilled them, litter the United States, including my home state of Louisiana. When these wells aren’t abandoned outright, ownership is transferred to a shell companywithout the funding to clean them up. They can remain uncapped for generations, leaking carcinogens and other toxic chemicals into the surrounding area and unleashing plumes of methane into the atmosphere.
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The industry’s process for extracting gas through fracking, moving it through pipelines, liquefying it and shipping it overseas is an energy intensive and wasteful process. From the well head through the pipeline to the export terminal and beyond, methane is leaked into the atmosphere. To regulate pressure along the pipeline and in the liquefaction plant, companies flare, or burn off the excess, just above ground level, releasing methane along with any other particulate matter.
Here too, the fossil fuel industry needs to be held to account. Sending a greenhouse gas into the atmosphere while marketing it as a “green” alternative to oil is dishonest.
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Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honoré (Ret.) is a former commanding officer of the U.S. First Army. He led Joint Task Force Katrina in New Orleans following the devastating Category 5 hurricane. He is currently head of The Green Army, an organization dedicated to finding solutions to pollution.
Read more: https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/5060288-methane-emissions-climate-change/
There are a few parts to unpack in this article.
Lt. Gen Honoré is someone with a serious commitment to serving his country. He served his country in the military, he led a major part of the Hurricane Katrina relief effort, and I believe he now sincerely believes he is still serving his country by his participation in The Green Army. We have to respect this is someone who has given a great deal to his country, and who still believes he is serving his country.
What about the gas companies?
There appear to be two parts to Lt Gen. Honoré’s grievance with gas companies.
- The suggestion gas companies are using legal tricks to avoid having to clean up old well sites.
- The suggestion gas companies need to be held to account for their contribution to global warming.
Part 1, the suggestion gas companies are using sharp practices to avoid cleaning up pollution. Looking at Lt. Gen Honoré’s Green Army website this mostly appears to relate to grievances over local issues in Louisiana. I don’t know the situation on the ground in Louisiana, so I’m not going to pass judgement on this issue.
Obviously I have a big problem with the second part of Lt Gen. Honoré’s concerns about global warming, because that concern is false. There is no evidence low level methane leaks are or will in the future cause any measurable harm to human health.
But there is plenty of evidence an unnecessary regulatory crackdown on gas company emissions would do great harm to poor people.
In Europe the impact of green policies on poor people is nothing short of horrific.
The USA is not immune to green lawfare messing up people’s lives;
Lt Gen. Honoré, I believe you are sincere, over your life you have demonstrated a deep commitment to helping people and serving your country. On your website I saw a mention of your Katrina experience. I can only imagine how horrible that was.
But shutting down the gas industry, or even heavily regulating gas emissions, would have a devastating impact on poor people.
Energy poverty is a real issue in the USA, and a far worse issue in Britain and Europe. Any intensification of environmental regulation of energy has to be weighed against the possible consequences of driving up the cost of energy.
Lt Gen. Honoré I urge you to please re-check your case, make absolutely sure that you are doing the right thing. Because if you succeed in your lawfare attack against gas companies for their insignificant methane emissions, if you contribute to unnecessarily driving up the cost of energy in the USA, the very people you want to help could suffer adverse consequences from your actions.
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