Tackling a huge climate issue, the Obama administration Wednesday announced long-awaited measures to slash U.S. emissions of methane—a potent greenhouse gas—from the oil and gas industry. Setting an "ambitious" goal, the White House is aiming for a 40 to 45 percent cut from 2012 levels in the next ten years.

Releases of heat-trapping methane, the main component of natural gas, are rife in the booming oil and gas industry. Leaky equipment and the intentional flaring of "waste" gas at oil sites have been a side effect of the breakneck production that has made the U.S. the world's largest gas producer. The new target, according to the White House, will save enough natural gas in 2025 to heat more than two million