May 2014, Vol. 241, No. 5

Features

Methane Leaks: An Industry Challenge In A Carbon-Sensitive Age

A combination of environmental and safety concerns elevated in recent years has made the chase to corral and eventually eliminate methane leaks from the nation’s natural gas infrastructure a budding crusade. Toss in the still-new phenomenon of the United States fast becoming a net exporter of fossil fuels and their byproducts, and the industry faces new challenges on an age-old problem. Studies vary, but all point to an increased amount of time, money and attention to the so-called “fugitive” methane – not to be equated with “lost-and-unaccounted-for (LAUF)” gas – that oozes from the world’s most comprehensive infrastructure for p