Student Investigator: Olin Shipstead (WSE)
Mentor: Scot Miller (Environmental Health & Engineering, WSE)

We propose to use a national network of atmospheric satellite observations to estimate natural gas leakage from the oil and natural gas industry. I would trace the ethane observations back in time (using atmospheric dispersion models run in reverse) to determine ethane emissions rates. With estimated ethane emission rates, we could then evaluate government inventories of emissions – what the government thinks is being emitted — against our emissions calculations. Through these analyses, we will understand how large these emissions are, where they occur, and which oil and natural gas regions leak the most fugitive emissions. In addition, we will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of using ethane as part of a long-term monitoring strategy.