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The Texas Railroad Commission continues to approve almost all applications for flaring and venting natural gas at drilling sites. As a result, flaring and venting of natural gas in Texas during drilling operations continues to be a significant source of green-house gas emissions. As reported here, this is in spite of rules which prohibit flaring, or burning off, natural gas at

Advocates say the Texas Railroad Commission process is more of a "rubber stamp" for oil and gas companies to keep polluting indefinitely.

State regulators raise doubts about natural gas flaring permits but rarely reject them. Advocates for reform say the permit process is a “rubber stamp” and that companies shouldn’t get a free pass to keep flaring indefinitely.

The effort to update the state’s oilfield waste disposal rules was initiated by Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright, one of the state’s top oil and gas regulators who has investments in the industry.