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Press Release: Colorado Takes Important Step in Cutting Methane Pollution, But More Action is Needed

HAWC Colorado • February 26, 2025

Colorado air quality leaders vote in favor of cutting oil & gas emissions

The Colorado Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) voted on February 21, 2025, to approve new rules implementing Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2024 oil and gas methane reduction requirements. The Regulation 7 rulemaking requires operators to eliminate methane-emitting pneumatic devices at oil and gas sites throughout the state and prioritizes reductions in areas that are violating ozone pollution standards. Colorado is the first state to incorporate these provisions into its state methane plan—due to the EPA by March 2026.


The AQCC’s rules also make improvements to the quality and consistency of air monitoring data collected at well sites, especially where people live, work and play. Advocacy groups look forward to working with the state to evaluate this important data and make further improvements to ensure that communities are informed about and protected from harmful emissions.


While the new rules strengthen Colorado’s commitments to reducing climate and ozone pollution, there is more to be done. The state is still not on track to comply with federal air quality standards, and it must adopt additional EPA methane reduction requirements before March 2026. At a pivotal moment for our planet, we will continue to push for stronger methane reduction requirements and cleaner air for all Coloradans.


Dr. Nikita Habermehl, Healthy Air & Water Colorado board member, pediatric emergency medical physician, and faculty at the CU School of Medicine, released the following statement following the rules adoption:


“Methane pollution is a silent threat to public health, exacerbating asthma and other respiratory illnesses, worsening air quality, and driving extreme heat-related illnesses, resulting in unnecessary emergency visits. By phasing out methane emissions from oil and gas, we have a critical opportunity to protect communities across Colorado. Implementing strong, statewide methane standards is a public health imperative. We appreciate the AQCC’s work to adopt nation-leading regulations to curb emissions and protect families across the state.”


Coalition members engaged in Regulation 7 rulemaking also had the below reactions to the final vote:


“Colorado is burdened by excessive levels of ground-level ozone and climate change impacts such as forest fires, floods, droughts, and degradation of biological resources,” said Ramesh Bhatt, Conservation Committee Chair, Sierra Club Colorado. “We are glad that the AQCC has recognized that methane pollution from oil and gas operations is a root cause of these crises and has adopted rules to reduce this pollution and conform to federal requirements. We hope to see these rules properly enforced and further regulations added to reduce pollution from the oil and gas industry.”


“Today marks another step forward in protecting children’s health by further reducing pollution from oil and gas operations for both children living in the ozone nonattainment area and also children most impacted by higher polluting facilities on the western slope,” said Laurie Anderson, CO Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force. “We appreciate the dedication and continued efforts of the Commissioners and the staff at the Division since this rule will not only improve our air quality, but also makes Colorado the first state to comply with a portion of the Federal Methane Rule – setting the stage for other states to follow.”


“The rules passed today, eliminating methane-emitting pneumatic controllers and prioritizing emission reductions in Colorado’s most heavily polluted regions, are a good step in Colorado’s fight against climate-harming emissions,” said Andrew Forkes-Gudmundson, senior manager for state policy at Earthworks. “The adoption of these rules today carries extra importance as Colorado becomes the first state to adopt portions of the EPA’s national methane rule, doing so well ahead of schedule. We appreciate the Commission’s commitment to rapid implementation of the methane rules.”


“At a time when the Trump administration is dismantling environmental safeguards and abandoning climate action, it is refreshing to see Colorado forge a different path by adopting common sense rules that will help combat ozone pollution and accelerate progress towards Colorado’s climate goals,” said Robin Cooley, Deputy Managing Attorney at Earthjustice. “We look forward to building on this progress and urge other states to follow Colorado’s lead in eliminating unnecessary methane pollution from the oil and gas industry.”


“Latino communities in Colorado have endured the harmful effects of methane pollution that have impacted our health and environment for generations,” said Patricia Garcia-Nelson, Colorado Fossil Fuel Just Transition Advocate, GreenLatinos Colorado. “As Colorado moves forward with new methane regulations, the Commission must adopt the strongest possible protections to hold polluters accountable and prevent ongoing harm. This includes enforcing shorter time frames for monitoring and repairing leaks to stop prolonged exposure to toxic emissions. We must continue to be an example to the nation while safeguarding public health and ensure a just transition away from fossil fuels.”


“Preventing methane pollution is critical for Latinos because children in our communities are twice as likely to die of asthma than white children due to exposure to environmental degradation,” said Julian Guevara, Community Organizer, Mi Familia En Acción. “We know that communities on the Western Slope and Front Range, often home to vulnerable populations, suffer the most from elevated methane and Volatile organic compounds (VOC) emission levels, leading to severe health issues such as respiratory problems and increased asthma rates among Latinos in Colorado. This rulemaking is another step in the right direction and we must continue to ensure that environmental justice remains at the forefront of Colorado’s air quality strategy.”


“From the Western Slope to the Front Range, Colorado communities across the state are experiencing the impacts of a warming climate. Cutting methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by eliminating the use of natural gas-emitting pneumatic devices is essential to community health and addressing the climate crisis,” said Jessica Pace, Interim Executive Director at Western Leaders Network. “ We commend the Air Quality Control Commission for adopting key EPA methane rule provisions in this rule and look forward to working with the state to ensure all Coloradans receive timely protection from pollution.”


“The Western Slope is both one of the fastest warming regions in the United States and is one of the top 5 emitters of methane from the oil and gas industry in the country. As such, we welcome the new rules from the AQCC to further reduce methane emissions in Colorado,” said Leslie Robinson, Chair, Grand Valley Citizens Alliance. “The decision to adopt the faster retrofit timeline for these pneumatic devices and targeting some of the largest sites in Western Colorado ensures that all Colorado communities receive timely protection from harmful pollutants. We also hope that the AQCC can quickly apply these retrofits to all oil and gas sites in Western Colorado as soon as possible.”


“Colorado’s most vulnerable communities need clean air now. Strengthening methane regulations and cutting pollution doesn’t just protect our environment—it safeguards the health of communities across the state,” said Tykee James, Senior Environmental Justice Campaign Manager, Conservation Colorado. “These new rules are essential to ensuring cleaner air, especially for those who are hit hardest by pollution and climate change. This is a critical step toward a healthier, more just future for all Coloradans.”


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HAWC Update - Greetings from our new ED Alex Boian

By HAWC Colorado • March 3, 2025
Hello HAWC Advocates and Friends! As I begin my third week as the new executive director of Healthy Air and Water Colorado, I wanted to send this brief note to introduce myself and express my gratitude to all of you in HAWC’s network of climate advocates and health professionals. My first few days have been filled with listening, learning, and getting to know many of you, your interests, and the incredible work you do to address climate change in order to protect public health. I join HAWC after more than 20 years in federal and state public policy working on natural resource issues, land use, sustainability, and in collaboration with local communities to ensure equitable access to clean and healthy air and water in Colorado, and across the country. Throughout my work, one thing has always been true, and that is the tremendous power of passionate individuals who come together, a coalition united by a common cause seeking real and lasting change. The HAWC network and our partners in climate advocacy are the coalition that is needed now more than ever to take action and advocate for policies that address the health impacts of worsening air quality, extreme temperatures, and threats to water availability and quality. I am thankful to each of you for the work you do every day at the crossroads of public health and climate policy, and for the time, energy, and enthusiasm you contribute. We are planning some in-person events and advocacy trainings so we have an opportunity to connect with you all and energize our work going forward. Stay tuned for more. I look forward to joining you in the work ahead! With gratitude, Alex Boian Executive Director Healthy Air and Water Colorado

The Harrowing Health Impacts of Transportation Pollution

By Megan Kemp - HAWC Advocacy Manager • November 17, 2022
Health professionals across Colorado see it daily: our poor air quality is having debilitating and sometimes deadly impacts on our communities. While they understand it in the aggregate, they are experiencing it one patient at a time. Kids with higher rates of asthma. Adults who are forced to stay indoors during the summer heat or wildfire season because underlying conditions make it impossible for them to breathe. People who can no longer effectively manage their diabetes due to rising temperatures. More babies born prematurely or at low birth weights. The reality is that the impacts of climate change aren’t just showing up in large scale changes in the frequency and severity of storms and the creeping changes to our seasonal weather patterns, the impacts of climate change are literally written on our bodies. For historically red-lined communities that have ended up along neighborhood destroying highways, these impacts increase exponentially. A major driver of this climate change and the concentric circles of public health distress is transportation, the cars we drive and the trucks that transport our goods and services. If we can bend the curve on transportation, we can make a significant difference in the quality of our air and the ground level ozone that debilitates so many and adds to the real challenges to our public health. Pollution from transportation typically comes in two forms and impacts public health in different ways. Particulate pollution from vehicle tailpipes can result in premature death in people with heart or lung disease, heart attacks and irregular heartbeat, aggravated asthma and other respiratory symptoms, such as irritation of the airways, coughing or difficulty breathing. These challenges can be particularly pronounced in the very young and the very old.

Press Release: Health Experts Press for Federal Action on Climate Change

October 27, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Oct. 27, 2022 Contact: Michele Ames 303-817-5510 Healthy Air & Water Colorado advocates press for federal action on climate change Listening session with Congressman Jason Crow focuses on high-impact policy change (DENVER, Oct. 27, 2022) – Health expert advocates on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus discussed their concerns about the worsening public health crisis driven by climate change with U.S. Congressman Jason Crow on Wednesday. The event was hosted by Healthy Air & Water Colorado and the University of Colorado School of Medicine and University of Colorado Climate & Health Program. Healthy Air & Water Colorado, a sister organization of Healthier Colorado, the state’s leading health advocacy organization with over 100,000 members, helps health professionals from across the state speak out on policies that will help to curb the acceleration of climate change and reduce its current impacts on human health. Advocates working with the organization addressed policy they would like the federal government to pursue to help bend the curve on the worst health impacts of climate change. "When I think about what climate change is, it’s a child health issue. It’s not just about the polar bears, it’s about the health of our children,” said Dr. Bhargavi Chekuri, Assistant Professor of Family Medicine and Director of Continuing Medical Education at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Chekuri and other health experts shared their experience in dealing with climate related health impacts with the congressman. The clinical and scientific data has confirmed increases in various climate-related diseases including increases in childhood asthma rates, increases in chronic lung ailments, growing difficulty managing chronic issues like diabetes, increasing rates of preterm births and decreasing birth weights, to name a few. In addition, medical professionals are also dealing with the immediate, catastrophic impacts of the increasing severity of storms and the growing frequency and veracity of wild fires across western states. Among other policy priorities at the federal level aimed at combatting these health impacts, Healthy Air & Water Colorado advocates have been pressing for ongoing investments in the country’s green energy infrastructure, transportation alternatives to help reduce fossil fuel emissions from cars and trucks, a leading cause of greenhouse gas and federal adoption of Colorado’s methane emission standards, which are the toughest in the nation. “When individuals have access to affordable and quality health care, it creates healthy and resilient communities. It’s going to take healthy resilient communities to address climate change and the health impacts,” said Dr. Kyle Leggott, assistant Professor of Family Medicine and policy scholar at the Farley Health Policy Center on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. ### About Healthy Air & Water Colorado Healthy Air & Water Colorado is the only statewide advocate for public policy that focuses exclusively on the growing public health threats posed by climate change. The effort is a sister organization of Healthier Colorado, which is dedicated to policy solutions that give all Coloradans the chance to live healthier lives. By engaging frontline health care workers who see and treat the real health issues caused by our warming environment, we are combining fact-based research with clinical expertise to raise awareness and encourage action to advance policies that will help to avert our growing public health emergency.
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Colorado Roadmap to curb greenhouse gas falls short on equity for communities most impacted by pollution

March 12, 2021
As Colorado works to put in place robust measures to curb greenhouse gas, the largest contributor to warming around the globe, it must not leave behind the communities most impacted by pollution through negative health impacts. Colorado released its Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap in September 2020 with a promise to return with a framework for ensuring equity for communities disproportionately impacted by the worst health effects of climate change due to financial inequity, structural racism and health inequities that have caused underlying health conditions as well as economic factors such as job loss and transition caused by shifts away from extraction. The equity framework was released in February 2021. It lays out the plan for state departments to communicate, engage, and partner with affected individuals and communities. While this is an important piece of protecting these communities, it falls short of capturing more tangible ways communities can reduce the impact of polluters and begin to address the health disparities pollution causes in their neighborhoods and homes. In May 2019, Governor Polis both signed into law the Colorado Action Plan to Reduce Pollution Act which set greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets and directed state agencies to develop a plan for how to meet these targets. The roadmap was designed to help the state meet its stated goal of reducing greenhouse gas by 50 percent by 2030 and 90 percent by 2050, an aggressive but attainable goal if strong action is taken soon. Some of the concrete steps taken in the draft equity framework include a data viewer model that will help the state prioritize disproportionately impacted communities, a new Climate Equity subcommittee that will oversee state strategies and rules that pertain to cutting emissions and a Climate and Equity data dashboard that will come online in 2021 to track equity and greenhouse gas emissions reduction progress. During the release of the roadmap, HAWC urged policymakers to return with a comprehensive equity framework. “We know that many communities across the state are subjected to disproportionate exposures to pollution,” HAWC said in a statement on the release. “The roadmap must make that reality clear and then address that reality with clear policy to specifically aid those communities and hold their polluters responsible. We also know that the needed transitions away from increased oil and gas development will have real impacts on local economies and Colorado workers. The roadmap should also address policies that will help those working families and individual communities make the transition to new industries and new jobs.“ HAWC appreciates some of the concepts and ideas contained in the framework, but doesn’t think it provides enough tangible benefits for the communities that have long been subject to environmental racism that has eroded local economies and generationally worsened health of affected communities. In addition, HAWC believes the original public comment timeframe to hear back from frontline communities -- just three weeks -- is not adequate to allow constructive feedback on the draft, and directly conflicts with the recommendations from the Equity Framework itself. HAWC joined a request with WildEarth Guardians calling on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to extend at least another month and applaud the department for granting that request to increase the feedback period to April 5. Please take a moment to urge CDPHE to include more tangible benefits and actionable steps to repair the harms of historial environmental racism in our frontline communities. You can read the equity framework . You can provide feedback to CDPHE on the equity framework. You can read the full Green House Gas Reduction Roadmap . You can read an executive summary of the roadmap .The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.
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