Inhofe criticizes EPA use of social cost of methane

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) recently sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy, criticizing her agency for using the social cost of methane (SCM) in calculating the monetary benefits of its proposed regulation on methane oil and gas.

“The SCM estimate is based on the deeply flawed methodology underpinning the social cost of carbon,” said the letter. “EPA endorsed the SCM for use in regulatory impact analyses (RIAs) without subjecting the estimate to the necessary level of peer review and public participation. Accordingly, I request EPA fully cooperate with our Congressional inquiry and refrain from citing the SCM in RIAs until these shortcomings are resolved.”

Inhofe, who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, also criticized EPA’s timing in using the SCM on its proposed regulation, for which the public comment period ended on Dec. 11, during the Paris climate talks. The agency released the rule on Aug. 18 and published it in the Federal Register on Sep. 18.

“The timing of the SCM’s application is seemingly driven by the international climate negotiations so the Obama Administration can cite regulatory actions for methane and tout outlandish benefit estimates for reducing methane conjured by the SCM,” said the letter.