Natural gas and the environment (2024)

Natural gas has many qualities that make it an efficient, relatively clean burning, and economical energy source. However, natural gas production and use have some environmental and safety considerations.

Natural gas is a relatively clean-burning fossil fuel

Burning natural gas for energy results in fewer emissions of nearly all types of air pollutants and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions than burning coal or petroleum products to produce an equal amount of energy. For comparison, for every 1 million Btu consumed (burned), more than 200 pounds of CO₂ are produced from coal and more than 160 pounds of CO₂ are produced from fuel oil. The clean-burning properties of natural gas have contributed to increased natural gas use for electricity generation and for fleet vehicle fuel in the United States.

Natural gas is mainly methane—a strong greenhouse gas

Some natural gas leaks into the atmosphere from oil and natural gas wells, storage tanks, pipelines, and processing plants. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that in 2021, methane emissions from natural gas and petroleum systems and from abandoned oil and natural gas wells were the source of about 33% of total U.S. methane emissions and about 4% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.¹ The oil and natural gas industry takes steps to prevent natural gas leaks. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates that in 2022, U.S. CO₂ emissions from burning natural gas for energy accounted for about 35% of total U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions.

Natural gas exploration, drilling, and production affects the environment

When geologists explore for natural gas deposits on land, they may disturb vegetation and soil with their vehicles. Drilling a natural gas well on land may require clearing and leveling an area around the well site. Well drilling activities produce air pollution and may disturb people, wildlife, and water resources. Laying pipelines that transport natural gas from wells usually requires clearing land to bury the pipe. Natural gas production can also produce large volumes of contaminated water. This water requires proper handling, storage, and treatment so that it does not pollute land and other waters. Natural gas wells and pipelines often have engines to run equipment and compressors, which produce air pollutants and noise.

In some areas, natural gas produced at oil wells is not economical to transport for sale or contains high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (a toxic gas), so it is burned (flared) at well sites. Natural gas flaring produces CO₂, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and many other compounds, depending on the chemical composition of the natural gas and on how well the natural gas burns in the flare. However, flaring is safer than releasing natural gas into the air and results in lower overall greenhouse gas emissions because CO₂ is not as strong a greenhouse gas as methane.

Advances in drilling and production technologies have positive and negative effects on the environment

New drilling and natural gas recovery technologies significantly reduce the land area that is disturbed to develop oil and natural gas resources. Horizontal and directional drilling techniques make it possible to produce more natural gas from a single well than in the past, so producers need fewer wells to develop a natural gas field.

Hydraulic fracturing (commonly called hydrofracking, fracking, or fracing) of shale, sandstone, and carbonate rock formations is opening up large reserves of natural gas that were previously too expensive to develop. Fracking involves pumping liquids under high pressure into a well to fracture the rock, which allows natural gas to escape from the rock. Producing natural gas with this technique has some effects on the environment:

• Fracturing wells requires large amounts of water. In some areas of the country, high water consumption for fracking may affect aquatic habitats and the availability of water for other uses.
• If mismanaged, hydraulic fracturing fluid—which may contain potentially hazardous chemicals—could be released through spills, leaks, faulty well construction, or other exposure pathways. These releases could contaminate surrounding areas.
• Hydraulic fracturing produces large amounts of wastewater at the surface, which may contain dissolved chemicals and other contaminants that require treatment before disposal or reuse. Because of the quantity of water produced and the complexities inherent in treating some of the wastewater components, proper wastewater treatment and disposal is important.
• According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), hydraulic fracturing can cause small earthquakes that are generally to small to be a concern. However, larger, damaging earthquakes could be caused by injecting wastewater as a means of disposal into the ground.
• Natural gas can be released into the atmosphere during and after well drilling. The U.S. EPA has published a final rule establishing guidelines on releasing natural gas that will help reduce methane and other harmful air pollutants from the oil and natural gas industry.

Natural gas production, transportation, distribution, and storage require strict safety regulations and standards

Because a natural gas leak could cause an explosion, strict government regulations and industry standards are in place to ensure safe transportation, storage, distribution, and consumption of natural gas. Because processed natural gas has no odor, natural gas companies add a strong, rotten egg-like smelling substance called mercaptan to natural gas so that people can smell leaks.

Last updated: April 16, 2024.