Blog post authored by: Betaneya Wondesen Healthy Futures Intern 2025
It has been one year since the EU introduced new methane regulations. These rules are already reducing emissions and improving health outcomes.
How Does Methane Impact Health?
- Reduces food security: Methane drives climate change, disrupting agricultural patterns and increasing climate change related natural disasters such as droughts, heatwaves and floods.
- Rising temperatures: Methane leads to rises in temperatures, resulting in increased heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke or exhaustion.
- Air pollution: Methane is often released alongside other pollutants, worsening asthma COPD and infections such as COVID-19 and influenza.
What Exactly Do The New Regulations Mean?
The rules apply to EU-based companies working with crude oil, natural gas and coal, as well as importers bringing these products into the EU.
- Mandatory reporting: Annual reporting for source-level emissions in the oil, gas and coal industry has been mandatory since 5 August 2025.
- Leak detection and repair: Oil and gas companies are required to check sites and equipment frequently for leaks, and if leaks are found, they must be fixed and monitored. This has been mandatory since 5 May 2025.
- Venting and routine flaring: Within the oil and gas industry, venting (the direct release of gases such as methane into the atmosphere) and flaring (the controlled burning of gases) are banned except for special circumstances. This will come into practice early next year, from 5 February 2026. Within the coal industry, both practices are currently being phased out, reflecting a broader effort to curb harmful emissions that damage both the environment and human health.
- Importer requirements: From 5 May 2025, importers are required to provide information regarding the production and transportation of their products. This includes the location of the producer, the route of the gas and any monitoring or reporting done at the production site. By 5 August 2030, regulations regarding maximum methane intensity values for products in the EU market will come into effect.
What Is Australia Doing?
Unlike the EU, Australia is only in the planning stages of a Methane Action Plan. Without these regulations in place, companies are unlikely to report methane emissions accurately.
The effects of this can be seen in the cover-up of a nearly 20-year-old leak that has only recently been brought to light. The methane leak from a SANTOS gas plant in Darwin has not only put staff at risk but has also compromised the safety of communities in the nearby areas of Darwin and Palmerston. A National Methane Action Plan is crucial to prevent similar cases in the future.
Santos LNG facility, Darwin, Northern Territory
Source: Santos 2021 Sustainability report https://www.santos.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2021-Sustainability-Report.pdf
Methane is responsible for one-third of global warming and is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. "Reducing methane emissions will protect the health of Australians and mitigate against the worst impacts of climate change", says Dr Kim Loo, a GP from Western Sydney, who argues that "Australia needs to implement a comprehensive Methane Action Plan.
What Does Healthy Futures Propose?
We are calling for a National Methane Action Plan to monitor methane emissions. This includes:
- Accurate monitoring, measuring and reporting of emissions through robust mechanisms and technologies.
- Strict protocols to identify and fix leaks.
- Investing in solutions such as new technologies, jobs and energy efficiency programs