A UCLA satellite analysis identifies Energy Transfer’s gas processing site near Shreveport, Louisiana, as the largest single methane 'super-emitter' in the United States, averaging about 1.56 tonnes of methane an hour from January 2025 to June 2026. That rate is roughly 15 times the super-emitter threshold set in a Biden-era EPA program, whose implementation the Trump administration has put on hold. Researchers at UCLA’s Emmett Institute linked operators to large plumes using satellite data and public records and named Energy Transfer as tied to four of the 15 top sites and 75 methane plumes in total, three times as many plumes as the next operator. Other major corporate sources in the rankings include Enterprise Products, Targa Resources, and Enlink. Cara Horowitz, executive director of the UCLA Emmett Institute, said many sites are repeat offenders responsible for multiple mega plumes and that the satellite record, while spotty, now makes previously invisible emissions plainly visible. Energy Transfer did not answer questions about the Shreveport releases; the company has previously said it conducts optical gas imaging inspections across hundreds of its facilities. The study’s authors and advocates say the visible satellite evidence should prompt public and regulatory attention to these large, wasteful releases of methane.
