Euronews, on Climate, 28 October 2026

3.0out of 10Minor

Trump rolls back methane rules for US oil and gas industry

Tap a highlight to see why it matters.2 findings

US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday plans to significantly ease restrictions on methane emissions from oil and gas producers, targeting regulations aimed at limiting the release of the potent greenhouse gas.

The regulations were introduced under former Democratic President Joe Biden's administration."Tonight, I'm officially terminating Biden's expensive and unnecessary methane regulations to save consumers and energy producers $45 billion," Trump said at the rally in Lubbock, Texas.Trump told a cheering crowd that the move would "unlock vast quantities of Texas natural gas." Texas is the largest fossil fuel-producing state in the United States.The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had previously estimated savings of $45 billion (around €39 billion) earlier this month, but provided no detailed breakdown of the figure,"Americans must be able to afford to heat their homes in the winter and fill up their car and drive to work," .

Left out here: Leaves out what changes the picture

The article never says the Lubbock rally was a midterm campaign rally for Senate candidate Ken Paxton a week before the elections, held amid voter anger over fuel prices driven by the war on Iran. Without it a reader may take the announcement as a routine policy step rather than a campaign pledge on energy costs.

How we know

"They can't do that when the people producing the energy are weighed down by unnecessary burdens."Methane's impact on global warmingMethane, the main component of natural gas, is the second-largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide, accounting for roughly a third of the rise in global temperatures since pre-industrial times, or around 0.5°C.Although methane traps significantly more heat than carbon dioxide, it remains in the atmosphere for just seven to 12 years, compared with hundreds of years for CO₂.According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the United States is the world's largest source of methane emissions from oil and gas production, followed by Russia.

Read the original article on euronews.com (opens in a new tab)
What we found (2)

Euronews reports Trump's plan to scrap Biden-era methane rules. It states plainly that methane is a major driver of global warming, and it notes that the EPA gave no breakdown of its $45 billion savings figure. The only voices it quotes are Trump and his EPA administrator, so the case for the rollback goes unanswered by any critic.

  1. One side gets the space

    Minor

    “said EPA administrator Lee Zeldin”

    Why this matters
    Euronews quotes only Trump and Lee Zeldin, who both make the case for the rollback, and gives no space to anyone who opposes it.
    The impression it gives
    A reader hears that the rules are expensive and unnecessary burdens, and hears no voice saying what is lost by removing them.
    The context
    Other outlets covering the same announcement quoted the Environmental Defence Fund and a researcher who said the EPA was giving oil and gas corporations exactly what they want. The article's science section supplies context but no critic.

    How we know

    Show it in the article

  2. Leaves out what changes the picture

    Minor

    What is missing

    The article never says the Lubbock rally was a midterm campaign rally for Senate candidate Ken Paxton a week before the elections, held amid voter anger over fuel prices driven by the war on Iran. Without it a reader may take the announcement as a routine policy step rather than a campaign pledge on energy costs.

    How we know

    Show where it belongs

What it gets right

  • “but provided no detailed breakdown of the figure”

    It flags that the $45 billion savings claim repeated by Trump came with no supporting breakdown, rather than passing it on unchecked.

  • “the United States is the world's largest source of methane emissions from oil and gas production”

    It gives the reader the scale of the US contribution, attributed to the IEA, so the stakes of the rollback are clear.

How other outlets reported it

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