Marathon Oil Company 2024 Clean Air Act Stationary Source Settlement

On July 11, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a settlement agreement with Marathon Oil Company (Marathon) that will reduce approximately 110,000 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and methane emissions equivalent to more than 2 million tons of carbon dioxide at oil and gas production facilities on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota. The settlement requires Marathon to pay a $64.5 million civil penalty; to date the largest Clean Air Act stationary source penalty. Additionally, Marathon is required to invest in extensive compliance measures estimated to cost an additional $177 million, much of which will be implemented by the end of 2024.

The settlement is part of the EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative to mitigate climate change and part of the EPA’s larger effort to hold oil and gas companies accountable for widespread violations at oil and gas facilities throughout the country. Like all of the EPA’s national enforcement initiatives, this initiative prioritizes communities already overburdened by pollution and with other potential environmental justice concerns.

On this page:

• Overview of Marathon Oil Company
• Summary of Violations
• Summary of Environmental Impacts
• Overview of Consent Decree
• Environmental Benefits
• Comment Period
• Contact Information

Overview of Marathon Oil Company

Marathon Oil Company is a petroleum company founded in 1877 and headquartered in Houston, Texas. Of relevance to this settlement, Marathon’s assets include 169 well pads located in North Dakota that extract oil and natural gas from wells and further separate liquids from gas in tank systems to refine product for sale.

Summary of Violations

The United States alleges in its complaint that Marathon violated the Clean Air Act and its implementing regulations at nearly 90 oil and natural gas production facilities on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota.

At the facilities, Marathon failed to comply with multiple volatile organic compound emission control requirements under several New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation’s Federal Implementation Plan applicable to storage vessels located at oil and natural gas production facilities. Additionally, Marathon failed to obtain preconstruction permits under the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) program and failed to apply or timely apply for operating permits under the Clean Air Act’s Title V permit program.

Summary of Environmental Impacts

Volatile organic compounds are a key component in the formation of ground-level ozone, a pollutant that irritates the lungs, exacerbates diseases such as asthma, and can increase susceptibility to respiratory illnesses, such as pneumonia and bronchitis.

Methane, a super climate pollutant, is a hydrocarbon that is a primary component of natural gas and a potent greenhouse gas, approximately 25-28 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. It is the second most abundant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide, accounting for about 16% of global emissions. Achieving significant reductions of methane would have a rapid and significant effect on atmospheric warming potential.

Overview of Consent Decree

Under the proposed consent decree, Marathon agreed to invest $177 million to address its noncompliance for all well pads on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation and will:

1. Apply and obtain permits that require Marathon to limit VOC emissions to less than 100 tons per year;
2. Install and operate flow meters and temperature monitors at flares to continuously monitor flare operation; and
3. Install automation that shut-in production when the facility exceeds emission limits, or the flares are not operating.

At all the 169 facilities subject to the consent decree, Marathon agreed to:

1. Conduct an engineering evaluation to ensure the facility is designed to route all emissions to a control device and many facilities will have automated shut-in to prevent emissions from releasing to atmosphere;
2. Conduct more frequent infrared camera inspections and audio, visual, and olfactory (AVO) inspections;
3. Perform enhanced preventative maintenance; and
4. Install tank pressure monitors.

Also, Marathon agreed to mitigate past excess emissions by

1. Purchasing two infrared cameras for the Energy Division of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation for use to inspect facilities for illicit VOCs on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation;
2. Construct new well pads in the state of North Dakota both within the exterior boundaries and outside the exterior boundaries of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation using a lowest emitting automated facility design to substantially reduce emissions and all facilities must emit less than 100 tpy of VOCs;
3. Replace or retrofit 870 venting pneumatic devices with zero-emission devices; and
4. Replace approximately 49 shop-built flares with engineered flares that will achieve a greater destruction rate efficiency and reduce emissions.

Environmental Benefits

When fully implemented, the EPA estimates that the new controls and requirements as well as the mitigation projects will reduce VOC and hazardous air pollutants emissions by approximately 21,812 tons per year of VOCs and CO2 by approximately 451,449 tons per year.

The work that Marathon will do under the proposed consent decree will result the equivalent of over two million tons of reduced carbon dioxide emissions over next five years, the equivalent of to taking 487,000 cars off the road.

Comment Period

The proposed consent decree lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.  Information on submitting comment and access to the settlement agreement is available on DOJ’s Proposed Consent Decree web page.

Contact Information:

Lauren Hammond
Senior Assistant Regional Counsel
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Region 8
Denver, Colorado
[email protected]