Rusty Frishmuth opened a metal equipment cabinet in an oil field east of Greeley and waited for the sound.
A few minutes later, a sharp woosh blew from inside. It was the sound of a pneumatic controller in action.
“Incredibly exciting, right?” joked Frishmuth.
As the director of environmental health and safety for HighPoint Resources, which drills across the Denver-Julesburg Basin, he’s used to hearing these little devices throughout the day.
Pneumatic controllers monitor temperature and liquid levels in thousands of oil fields across Colorado and other energy states. The controllers are often powered by the pressurized natural gas produced on-site but can also run on cleaner sources of energy, such as compressed air and electricity.
Miguel Otárola/CPR News
The little bursts of natural gas may not seem like much, but researchers and environmental groups say they add up. Pneumatic controllers were responsible for more than a fifth of reported onshore drilling emissions in 2019, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Those emissions caught the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission's attention, which last month approved a proposal from environmental groups and industry leaders to more strictly regulate the controllers.
Starting May 1, oil and gas companies operating in Colorado will have to use non-emitting controllers in new facilities, according to the new rule. Companies will also have to replace controllers that run on natural gas at existing facilities with non-emitting controllers over the next two years.
The Link LonkMarch 09, 2021 at 06:01PM
https://www.cpr.org/2021/03/09/these-little-devices-on-oil-fields-make-a-lot-of-emissions-new-regulations-could-change-that/
These Little Devices On Oil Fields Make A Lot Of Emissions. New Regulations Could Change That - Colorado Public Radio
https://news.google.com/search?q=little&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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