Methane leak detection at oil and gas wells misses the majority of emissions because satellites and flyovers cannot attribute leaks to individual wellheads

EPA's methane emissions rules require oil and gas operators to detect and repair leaks, but current detection methods -- satellites, aircraft, and drive-by surveys -- can only reliably detect emissions above 100 grams per hour and cannot attribute detected plumes to specific wellheads on multi-well pads. So what? Operators can technically comply with monitoring requirements while the majority of cumulative methane emissions from smaller, chronic leaks go undetected and unreported. So what? National methane inventories are built on incomplete data, with Canada's own government acknowledging that different model assumptions produce wildly divergent emission estimates, making it impossible to know if regulations are actually reducing emissions. So what? Methane is 80x more potent than CO2 over 20 years, so underestimated methane leakage means global warming projections and carbon budgets are miscalculated, making climate commitments unreachable through pathways policymakers believe are on track. So what? For operators who do invest in continuous monitoring and leak repair, there is no competitive advantage because regulators cannot distinguish between compliant and non-compliant operators using current detection methods. So what? The 3.7 million orphaned and abandoned wells across the US continue leaking with no responsible party, and the $4.7 billion in federal plugging funds can only address a fraction because finding and characterizing these wells requires site-by-site surveys that do not scale. The problem persists because continuous ground-level sensors cost $5,000-15,000 per wellhead and there are over 900,000 active wells in the US alone, satellite resolution is improving but still cannot resolve individual wells on dense pads, and the oil and gas industry's self-reported data is the basis for most regulatory compliance assessments.