Reducing Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Development: Strategies for State-level Policymakers

This working paper provides a guide for US state policymakers to regulate methane emissions from natural gas development, focusing on cost-effective technologies and model rules to reduce leaks across the supply chain.

• Reducing natural gas leakage to a benchmark of one percent or less of total production is considered both achievable and cost-effective. Achieving this level ensures that natural gas is less climate-intensive than coal for electricity generation and less so than gasoline and diesel fuel for transportation.
• The combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing has expanded natural gas production areas and altered the US energy landscape, leading some states in shale gas basins to become production leaders despite having little prior experience with significant extraction.
• Marketed natural gas production in the United States grew by 44 percent between 2005 and 2014, with a projected further increase of approximately 30 percent by 2040.
• Effective regulation of methane emissions requires a coordinated approach across the entire supply chain at both federal and state levels. Addressing these preventable emissions can also provide the co-benefit of reducing local air pollution.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Reducing Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Development: Strategies for State-level Policymakers. https://www.wri.org/research/reducing-methane-emissions-natural-gas-development-strategies-state-level-policymakers

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Reducing Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Development: Strategies for State-level Policymakers. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/reducing-methane-emissions-natural-gas-development-strategies-state-level-policymakers.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Reducing Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Development: Strategies for State-level Policymakers |url=https://www.wri.org/research/reducing-methane-emissions-natural-gas-development-strategies-state-level-policymakers |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendreducing, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Reducing Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Development: Strategies for State-level Policymakers}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/reducing-methane-emissions-natural-gas-development-strategies-state-level-policymakers}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }