This month, the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management’s (FECM) Division of Methane Mitigation Technologies released updated fact sheets which provide an overview of state-level flaring and venting regulations.

Key insights from the 2020-2021 data:

• In 2021, the United States was the largest producer of oil in the world, producing about 11 million barrels per day (Bpd); Texas, New Mexico, and North Dakota were the top three oil-producing states.


• The United States was also the largest producer of natural gas in 2021 with 118.8 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in natural gas gross withdrawals and production. The top producing states were Texas, Pennsylvania, and Alaska.


• The average amount of flared and vented natural gas decreased from 1.48 Bcf/d in 2019 to 1.15 Bcf/d in 2020. This is partially due to lower levels of production during pandemic-related inactivity; other factors that have led to reduced emissions include federal and state regulatory efforts to reduce methane emissions, companies taking voluntary actions and measures to minimize flaring of associated natural gas, and additional pipeline projects connecting sources of supply and consumption.

FECM supports research and development of technologies that reduce the amount of natural gas (e.g., methane) released into the atmosphere during crude oil and natural gas production, processing, and storage operations. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and makes up nearly 10% of all greenhouse gas emissions every year, with the energy sector being one of the largest sources of U.S. methane emissions.

Learn more about FECM’s efforts to eliminate methane emissions from the oil and natural gas supply chain by 2030 on the Methane Mitigation Technologies program page, and learn more about DOE’s research and development to reduce emissions from flaring and venting here.