Blog

Tagged In: ,

Statement From the Ohio Environmental Council in Response to Senator Portman’s Position on the BLM Methane Standards

David Miller, May 9, 2017

“Senator Portman’s decision to back the oil and gas industry against the best interest of Ohioans is terribly disappointing. His action to repeal the Bureau of Land Management’s methane waste rules will cost American taxpayers over $800 million over the next decade and leave beautiful public lands like Ohio’s Wayne National Forest vulnerable to air and water pollution. 

In a statement, Senator Portman said he received assurances from the Secretary of the Interior to mitigate methane leaks. Just a few months ago Portman received the same assurances from the Trump Administration to protect Lake Erie in exchange for his vote for EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. This turned out to be an empty promise as Pruitt’s EPA budget gutted funding for the hugely successful Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. 

We fear Portman is falling for yet another empty promise. A repeal of the BLM’s methane waste rule isn’t good for Ohioans, and we urge Senator Portman to change his vote.”