Opinion: The Outdoor Recreation Economy in Texas Depends on EPA Safeguards

As a local bicycle shop owner, I know the value outdoor recreation can bring to people's lives. It's not just because it drives my bike business. Nature has always been, and will continue to be, a place for people to seek refuge from the everyday stress of their lives. In Austin, we are lucky to be able to exchange the hot expanses of cracked concrete for nearby soft grass and shady dirt trails littered with squirrels and lizards instead of cans and wrappers. Businesses like Bikealot that support outdoor enthusiasts absolutely rely on our pleasant public parks, rivers, lakes, and hiking/biking trails. Over the last few years, however, the entire country – Texas included – has experienced the devastating effects of climate change. Walking outside is like walking into a hot oven these days. Our wildlife shrinks as their habitats swelter. Taking a breath of fresh air isn't just inhaling oxygen – it's also inhaling acrid chemicals. Without immediate and meaningful safeguards, climate change is on a trajectory of rapid intensification. I speak for myself and outdoors lovers everywhere when I say that we urgently need strong commonsense protections against methane and other harmful pollution from the oil and gas industry, or else my local business, other outdoor recreation businesses, and all who enjoy the outdoors will no longer be able to find sanctuary in nature.

Methane is a menace to our climate, and oil and gas sites release a lot of it. In the U.S. alone, 16 million metric tons of methane are released annually by the oil and gas industry through flaring, venting, and leaks, which has the same near-term climate impact as 350 coal plants. Flaring is when methane gas is burned off into the atmosphere, while venting is its invisible release into the open air. Leaks typically occur by accident, but oil and gas sites are not currently required to patch all of them.

The poor air quality created by methane and other air pollution from oil and gas operations contributes to smog and triggers asthma. It's not only harmful to the environment or the health of our communities, but it also harms our local recreation economies, which rely on the great outdoors. Our public lands are an imperative part of the well-being of the Austin economy, people, and wildlife, therefore, we must fiercely protect them.

In November 2022, the Environmental Protection Agency issued an updated draft rule to cut methane and other harmful pollutants from oil and gas operations. The proposed rule marks strong progress to help rein in excess emissions that are trapping heat in our atmosphere by conducting regular inspections of smaller oil and gas wells with leak-prone equipment and abandoned wells, requiring the transition to zero-emitting pneumatic equipment, and utilizing advanced technology monitoring, which will spur innovation and create jobs. However, the EPA must strengthen the methane rule to eliminate pollution from the unnecessary and wasteful practice of routine flaring.

Supporting and strengthening the EPA's safeguards now is the only way future generations of Americans will be able to enjoy all the incredible biking, hiking, camping, and rafting opportunities that so many generations have been able to enjoy before them. Families deserve to breathe in clean, fresh air when they bike Austin's neighborhoods and trails. Hikers should be able to enjoy Texas' terrain without passing out from record-breaking temperatures. Campers need the lush, canopied forests, the gushing, white-hemmed rivers, and the shaded, mossy rocks that make their trips worthwhile. We need to protect what makes Texas so special by curbing methane pollution.

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Brad Wimberly is the owner of Bikealot, a family-owned-and-operated sustainable bike shop in South Austin.