NM Oil & Gas Association Twitter Campaign Tries To Apply The Paddles To Flailing Fracking Sector
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On the 2nd Day of Fracking
“Oil and natural gas byproducts are used in hospitals to save lives.”
Total plastic production accounts for just about 4% of all petroleum use, and medical goods are just a tiny fraction of that. Would the world lose its plastic medical supplies if fracking stopped? Unlikely. This fractoid is likely part of the oil and gas industry’s push to make more plastic (and make that plastic seem recyclable) as the rise of electric vehicles and clean energy projects shrink fossil fuel demand. Meanwhile, fracking does contribute to putting people in hospitals through increased air pollution around oil and gas fields.
On the 3rd Day of Fracking
“From 1990-2018, methane emissions from natural gas systems dropped 23.6% during a period when production increased more than 70%. This is effectively a 55% reduction in the rate of emissions.”
NMOGA didn’t offer any sources for this, but there are official sources that track methane emissions. One is the New Mexico Environment Department, which recently reported, “Leak rates in New Mexico’s Permian Basin increased 250% in 12 months.” For years, the state has relied on operators to report their own emissions and violations, and that obviously hasn’t worked. “It’s clear that voluntary emissions reductions measures undertaken by some operators are not enough to solve this problem,” NMED Secretary James Kenney says in the release. Another source is the EPA, which shows an 8% reduction in all natural gas and petroleum systems emissions from 1990-2018.
On the 4th Day of Fracking
“Vehicular emissions have decreased by over 99% since the 1970s.”
Fracking does not affect vehicle emissions. Fracking is a process used to force oil and gas from the ground. Vehicle emissions come from burning that fuel to power those cars and trucks and planes. For decades, state and federal governments have passed fuel-efficiency and emissions standards leading to decreased vehicle emissions.
NMOGA’s connection is impressively misleading, though. It is true that vehicle tailpipe emissions from new cars have dropped by 99% since 1970, in the wake of improved fuel efficiency and exhaust standards. It is also true that the oil and gas industry worked tirelessly during that time to thwart improved standards and continues to do so. Ironically, fuel efficiency standards were first implemented following the 1970s-era oil shocks to increase energy security (see the 1st Day, above).
EDIT
https://capitalandmain.com/fact-checking-the-energy-industrys-pr-twitter-stunt-0120
