Testimony on State Methane Rules: Dr. Kathleen Mezoff
Members and supporters of New Mexico Interfaith Power & Light have prepared testimony for hearings held by the Environmental Improvement Board. The hearings, held the week of Sept. 20-24, are in support of the The New Mexico Environment Department’s (NMED) strong proposal to cut ozone-forming volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and methane released by the oil and gas industry.
Dear Members of the Environmental Improvement Board,
I am Dr. Kathy Mezoff, a retired pediatrician who practiced in Gallup at
RMCH for 34 years. You would be right to suspect that, as a pediatrician, I have
a very special place in my heart for babies and children. New Mexico is home to
some of the worst methane one ozone precursor pollution In the country; we
know that babies and children, with their small lungs and developing brains, are
at great risk from the pollutants and toxins from oil and gas operations. It is
therefore imperative from a public heath perspective that we stop the one million
tons of climate-warming methane and the hundreds of thousands of tons of
volatile organic compounds that endanger the health especially of those in the
rural areas of southeast and northwest New Mexico — cancers, asthma, and
heart disease —to name a few. Leaks due to equipment malfunction and lack of
maintenance account for over half of the oil and gas industry’s methane
emissions in the state.
In addition to the health and quality of life concerns in Eddy, Lea, and San
Juan counties, methane pollution accelerates climate change, which will
especially affect the futures of our children as it worsens and accelerates. Our
weather is already causing frequent catastrophes across the world.
Rules to curb methane waste and pollution through updated equipment
and technology can actually create jobs in the methane mitigation industry —as
well as saving our state millions of dollars.
Please — let’s get this done — for the sake of our children, society, and
our world!
Dr. Kathleen Mezoff – Gallup, New Mexico