A study published Tuesday finds that America enjoys a profound abundance of natural gas so large that even the most conservative estimates indicate a supply for at least the next 100 years. The study, conducted by The National Petroleum Council – a federal advisory committee that serves under the umbrella of the Department of Energy – also finds that federal energy and climate policies already in place would create a 59% reduction in methane emissions by 2050.

The study, titled “Ch4arting the Co2urse: Reducing GHG Emissions From The U.S. Natural Gas Supply Chain,” was requested by Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, who asked for a comprehensive assessment of the magnitude and major sources of natural gas-related greenhouse gas emissions, along with reductions in those emissions that could be achieved from a variety of potential public policy pathways between now and 2050. The end goal is the publication of a report that can serve as an actionable reference point for the development of effective government policy.

“We performed a detailed analysis of different kinds of both regulatory and voluntary market mechanisms that would incentivize people to reduce their GHG emissions,” John Dabbar, Managing Director for Low Carbon Technology at ConocoPhillipsConocoPhillips 0.0%, told me in a recent interview. “We analyzed the pros and cons of each, so that regulators can start to look at it and say, if we provide this incentive, here are the things we need to keep in mind to make it successful.”

It is customary for any NPC study requested by a sitting Energy Secretary to be co-chaired by a selected and willing company, along with a senior official from the government. In this case ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance served as the industry co-chair, while Deputy Energy Secretary David M. Turk served as his government’s counterpart. In all, the project involved the participation of more than 200 participants from the industry and third-party stakeholders like the Environmental Defense Fund, the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, Boston Consulting Group, and Clearview Energy Partners.

Editor's Note: The Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation's Marilu Hastings and David Monsma led CGMF's collaboration with the NPC.

The dual reports provide recommendations to meaningfully reduce emissions across the natural gas supply chain and effectively deploy low-carbon intensity hydrogen at scale. This Fortune brief discusses the report related to reducing emissions across the natural gas supply chain.

Hastings and Monsma co-chaired comprehensive, stand-alone chapters on Societal Considerations and Impacts (SCI) for each respective technology. 

Their unique and vital work focused on the intersection of society, community engagement, and energy infrastructure for the transition to advanced energy and is an important contribution to understanding the social dynamics of energy development.