It's important to have an association in the fluid sealing industry focused on informing the North American process industries on sealing device technology and ways to safely and cost-effectively minimize leakage, increase equipment service life and reduce product loss. The Fluid Sealing Association® (FSA) has been reviewing progress against its strategy and action plan and other issues affecting the fluid sealing industry as a whole. This is especially important with the recent events that have occurred since the change in the administration.
The EPA unveiled in April it was exercising its authority under Clean Air Act Section 307 to reconsider its rule covering methane emissions from new, reconstructed and modified oil and gas sources, and as such would stay the regulation's June 3 compliance date for 90 days while it took comments.
"The move is in line with President Donald Trump's Energy Independence Executive Order," said EPA Administrator E. Scott Pruitt.
This action was subsequently supported by oil and gas industry associations.
"Methane emissions from the natural gas industry have fallen 18.6, even as production increased by 50 percent between 1990 and 2015. In addition, the 2012 standards developed in collaboration with industry and innovation driven by industry's incentive to capture more of what we sell are getting the job done," said API Regulatory and Scientific Affairs Senior Director Howard J. Feldman.
The Senate also voted against H.J. Res. 36, the Congressional Joint Resolution of Disapproval regarding methane, with a 49-51 vote. The methane emissions rule, issued by the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management in November 2016, addresses a potent greenhouse gas that has been claimed to accelerate climate change. The rule would regulate oil and gas companies to capture methane that had been previously burned off or "flared" at new and existing sources. Contrary to this, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is taking a position that the methane mitigation industry creates jobs while reducing harmful methane emissions.
Some other key events to take note of that could impact the fluid sealing industry are:
- An executive order was signed to begin unraveling efforts by the last administration to combat climate change (March 2017).
- A decision to cut the EPA budget by 31 percent (May 2017).
- EDF launched a web campaign to solicit support in its activities to fight the changes being imposed by the administration.
- Canada released its much-anticipated draft rule, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), on methane emissions for existing sources in the oil and gas sector (May 2017).
- President Trump announced the U.S. will pull out of the Paris Climate Agreement (June 2017).
The battle lines appear to have been drawn. The point here is not to take sides or cast an opinion; it is to point out that the norms of the FSA and the industries its member companies serve are in flux, so much so the future is unclear on one of the U.S.'s major industrial drivers: efforts to combat climate change.
When the EPA and the White House announced a new goal to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by 40-45 percent from 2012 levels by 2025 on Jan. 14, 2015, the FSA, its member companies, and the fluid sealing industry were committed to this goal. So where does this leave us in this environment of split opinions and numerous news stories relating to the impact of emissions from the industrial sectors and an unknown future for existing regulations and industry standards?
It is now more important than ever for the fluid sealing industry to have a clear focus on education. With the FSA, none of its courses specifically call out environmental compliance or emissions abatement. The fluid sealing industry needs courses designed to educate the process industries on best practices and the safe handling of the manufactured sealing devices. The impacts of these courses are improved efficiencies, longer operational life and, of course, reduced product loss through leakage, also known as reduced emissions.
As the current political environment continues to develop its long-term plans for environmental control policies and greenhouse gas emissions, associations like the FSA must continue to advocate for its member companies through its marketing and training activities.
For more information, email Charli@Empowering-Brands.com.
