Satellite data show declining methane emissions in Uinta Basin even as production rises, researcher says

Dr. Seth Lyman, representing the Uinta Basin Ozone Working Group and the Bingham Research Center, told the Collaborative that methane emissions in the Uinta Basin have declined overall since 2013 and fell to a basin low in 2024 despite increased oil and gas production. "Methane actually is not very important for making ozone," Lyman said, but he added that methane is useful as a satellite-detectable tracer for other emissions and for tracking overall trends.

Lyman described two methods used to estimate basin emissions: a satellite-based approach (TROPOMI) that provides consistent coverage starting in 2019, and ground-site- plus-atmospheric-model approaches for earlier years. He said the data indicate a drop from an estimated 5% of energy produced lost as methane in 2013 to about 1.5% lost in 2024, and that much of the year-to-year variability is correlated with natural-gas production levels.

He noted policy and practice drivers including 2016 Tier 3/OAQPS-like standards, 2022 state LDAR and flaring rules, and 2024 federal and state actions designed to reduce emissions; he said voluntary operational changes across the industry also likely drove efficiency gains. Lyman demonstrated an online web app produced by the Bingham Research Center that publishes the dataset and allows scatter plots, downloads and time-series exploration.

Ending: Lyman encouraged stakeholders to review the publicly available data app and to contact him with observations or questions; he said the basin is trending in the right direction but that total emissions remain the metric relevant to ozone formation and public-health concerns.