Annual Report 2019

Jump to: Program HighlightsProgram SummaryLearningCollaborationTaking Action

As the oil and natural gas industry supplies the energy needed to power America’s modern economy, its continued commitment to advance environmental solutions has never been stronger. That’s the context for The Environmental Partnership, a new coalition of oil and natural gas companies that have voluntarily committed to continuously improve the industry’s environmental performance. To underscore our commitment, our participants agreed to track their progress and report annually.

See our progress in the 2019 Annual Report (9 MB).

Download the 2019 Annual Report 4-Pager (2 MB).

Mike Sommers

Mike Sommers

President & CEO, API

The Partnership is a landmark initiative for the oil and natural gas industry, providing the blueprint for cooperative learning and sharing of best practices that will achieve results for years to come.

Matthew Todd

Matthew Todd

Director, The Environmental Partnership

The Environmental Partnership came together recognizing that more could be accomplished through a collective effort.

Vanessa Ryan

Vanessa Ryan

Program Chair, Chevron

We’re committed to accelerating the program’s progress and meeting the challenge of continually improving the industry’s environmental performance.

2019 Annual Report Highlights

Leak Detection Program

  • 0.16% leak occurrence rate
  • More than 78,000 sites surveyed
  • More than 156,000 surveys conducted
  • More than 56 million components inspected

General Info

Manual Liquids Unloading

  • Emissions minimized by monitoring more than 132,000 manual liquids unloading events

Pneumatic Controllers

  • More than 3,000 high-bleed pneumatic controllers replaced, retrofitted, or removed from service
  • More than 28,000 high-bleed pneumatic controllers replaced, retrofitted, or removed from service prior to 2018
  • 38 participating companies no longer have high-bleed pneumatic controllers in their operations

2018 Learning Together

Participants in the program are committed to continually learning about the latest innovations and best practices that can further reduce their own environmental footprint while safely and responsibly growing energy production.

The Environmental Partnership’s Permian Spring Workshop 2018
The spring workshop included a focus on building effective leak detection and repair programs, and using site designs to help reduce emissions.

The Environmental Partnership’s Appalachian Summer Workshop 2018
Our summer workshop covered a number of issues important to oil and natural gas producers, including a hands-on look at technologies, such as optical gas imaging (OGI) cameras, that can be deployed for leak detection.

The Environmental Partnership Annual Meeting 2018
Our annual meeting featured experts and operators of all sizes for a series of discussions on the technologies and trends that can help companies improve their environmental performance.

Learning Spotlight

“As a smaller operator in the Permian, it was important for us to attend and have an opportunity to communicate to the other local operators the value of being a participating company in The Environmental Partnership.” – Tyler Timmons, Production Engineer for CrownQuest Operating

Read Tyler Timmon’s full spotlight

2018 Collaborating with One Another

The Partnership works to bring together members of the U.S. oil and natural gas industry — as well as academics, researchers and regulators — to collaborate on ways to improve environmental performance while responsibly developing our nation’s oil and natural gas resources.

The Environmental Partnership’s First Annual Conference
The Partnership’s annual conference brought together producers, manufacturers, researchers and regulators to take an in-depth look at pneumatic controllers and how this vital equipment can be properly utilized to reduce emissions.

The Environmental Partnership gets hands-on demonstrations at the METEC Site and assists METEC’s Optical Gas Imaging Camera Study
Our work with the Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Center (METEC) has already created benefits for researchers and the industry.

Dan Zimmerle

Collaborating Spotlight

“Through its grant and promotional efforts, The Environmental Partnership has helped enhance our research into methane-sensing technologies and fostered important ties between researchers and producers.” – Dan Zimmerle, Senior Research Associate, Energy Institute at Colorado State University

Read Dan Zimmerle’s full spotlight

2018 Taking Action

Our participants are committed to taking concrete steps to help further reduce our industry’s environmental footprint. The Partnership’s initial focus is on reducing emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). According to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), the three primary sources of industry methane emissions are pneumatic devices, equipment leaks, and leaks that occur during the liquids unloading process.

Based on the GHGRP, The Environmental Partnership created three performance programs – one for each emissions source. Through these programs, we are making real progress in reducing emissions and ensuring that we are responsible stewards of our environment.

Leak Detection and Repair Program

Pneumatic Controller Program

Manual Liquids Unloading Program

Taking Action Spotlight

“Thanks to The Environmental Partnership, companies like ours can work with other producers on solutions that will help further reduce emissions.” – Angela Zivkovich, Health, Safety and Environmental Advisor, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation

Read Angela Zivkovich’s full spotlight