Enemies of Energy: Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)

Editor’s note: The following is an excerpt from Enemies of Energy, a research report created for the Capital Research Center. The page for the full report is here: Enemies of Energy.

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Many of America’s largest anti-energy NGOs work in nations across the globe. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) deployed a spy satellite to hover above it all.

EDF’s MethaneSAT, an $88 million project funded by the Bezos Earth Fund and other partners was shot into orbit in March 2024. The ostensible objective was to track methane (i.e.: natural gas) leaks that escape during oil and gas production. Supporters interviewed by NPR claimed that energy firms don’t want to know about wasteful gas leaks. One said that the “beauty of having MethaneSAT” is that “we don’t have to ask [oil companies] permission nicely to go on site and make measurements, right?” ^[i] [ii]

The perverse assumption is that the oil and gas industry isn’t greedy enough. Because if MethaneSAT was truly revealing serious diversions of natural gas that could otherwise be captured and profitably sold, rather than wasted, then the energy firms would presumably be delighted to have that information and use it. As the kids like to say, they have one job, and that job is to sell fuel.

A related observation from the NPR report: “Sometimes oil companies deliberately burn methane gas if they can’t pipe it somewhere.” True enough, but this leaves out the inconvenient truth that the EDF is a consistent opponent of energy pipelines. Just weeks before the lightly-informed NPR reporter wrote that line, EDF released a research paper titled “Non-Pipeline Alternatives.” ^{[iii] [iv]} [v]

If MethaneSAT were truly about preventing gas from being wasted, rather than preventing the production of it, why is EDF working to block the pipelines that permit the otherwise wasted gas from being transported and sold?

The absurdity of all this must have affected even the spy satellite, because MethaneSAT went dark after a little more than a year. “On Friday, June 20, the MethaneSAT mission operations lost contact with MethaneSAT,” announced EDF in the summer of 2025. “After pursuing all options to restore communications, we learned this morning that the satellite has lost power, and that it is likely not recoverable.”[vi]

Which joke works best: The one about the anti-energy satellite that has a power failure; or the one about the anti-energy NGO looking for wasted natural gas that ends up wasting $88 million instead?

EDF can afford to lose the loot. Among the anti-energy nonprofits, EDF is second in annual revenue to only the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). But as the name implies, the latter has more of a worldwide focus, while EDF’s area of influence is more concentrated on the United States.

EDF is a tax exempt, 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit. For the year ending September 2024, it reported $298.7 million in total revenue and net assets of $299.8 million. (Corporate affiliates of EDF include the Environmental Defense Action Fund—a legally independent 501(c)(4) advocacy NGO—and EDF Action Votes, a political committee.)  [vii]

In addition to promoting weather dependent power while impeding energy pipelines and natural gas, EDF is also an opponent of emissions-free nuclear power.

In a 2016 news release that predicted “clean” energy would replace the literally clean electricity that comes from nuclear power, EDF promoted the closure of California’s Diablo Canyon nuclear station. Fortunately, and in a rare respite for California’s perpetually abused electricity consumers, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has so far supported keeping Diablo in service. ^[viii]

New York wasn’t so fortunate.

In January 2017 EDF praised then-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo for agreeing to shut down the Indian Point nuclear power plant, previously the source of electricity for millions in the New York City region. “The plan to close Indian Point will ensure that the electric system remains stable without increasing pollution and will secure the health and welfare of millions living and working in the Tri-State area,” claimed the EDF news release.[ix]

Instead, according to a February 2022 analysis by Politico’s E&E News, it was mostly natural gas powerplants that replaced the nuclear energy, and this corresponded to an 18.8 percent spike in New York’s annual emissions. “In New York, power-sector emissions reached 28.5 million tons in 2021, up from 24 million tons in 2019, according to EPA figures,” reported E&E. “The increase coincided with the shutdown of Indian Point’s two nuclear units in 2019 and 2021.” [x]

The ironies are piled high.

EDF’s opposition to low-emissions natural gas was so strident, and EDF so wealthy, that they were able to launch an anti-gas surveillance satellite. But their opposition to nuclear power led directly to a lot more natural gas getting burned in New York City’s electricity production.

To top it all off, EDF’s headquarters is on Park Avenue in New York City. So, right in their own hometown the anti-methane NGO’s policies led directly to the replacement of emission-free power with methane-generated electricity.

PDF hyperlink to full report

Endnotes

[i] Zhong, Raymond. “Methane-Tracking Satellite Is Lost, in a Blow to Climate Efforts.” The New York Times. July 2, 2025. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://web.archive.org/web/20250703035055/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/climate/methane-sat-lost.html

[ii] Simon, Julia. “A new satellite will track climate-warming pollution. Here’s why that’s a big deal.” NPR. March 5, 2024. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.npr.org/2024/03/05/1235694992/a-new-satellite-will-track-climate-warming-pollution-heres-why-thats-a-big-deal

[iii] Zhong, Raymond. “Methane-Tracking Satellite Is Lost, in a Blow to Climate Efforts.” The New York Times. July 2, 2025. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://web.archive.org/web/20250703035055/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/climate/methane-sat-lost.html

[iv] Simon, Julia. “A new satellite will track climate-warming pollution. Here’s why that’s a big deal.” NPR. March 5, 2024. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.npr.org/2024/03/05/1235694992/a-new-satellite-will-track-climate-warming-pollution-heres-why-thats-a-big-deal

[v] “EDF Responds to Army Corps of Engineers Decision to Grant Easement on Dakota Access Pipeline.” Environmental Defense Fund. February 8, 2017. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/edf-responds-army-corps-engineers-decision-grant-easement-dakota-access-pipeline

“Trump Decision to Approve the Keystone Pipeline “Wrong on the Merits”” Environmental Defense Fund. March 24, 2017. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/trump-decision-approve-keystone-pipeline-wrong-merits

Sullivan, Magdalen; and Erin Murphy. “NON-PIPELINE ALTERNATIVES: Meeting Energy Demand Responsibly.” Environmental Defense Fund. February 2024. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.edf.org/sites/default/files/2024-02/Non-Pipeline-Alternatives-Report_EDF_Feb2024.pdf

“D.C. Circuit Court Strikes Down Unlawful FERC Approval of a Natural Gas Pipeline.” Environmental Defense Fund. June 22, 2021. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/dc-circuit-court-strikes-down-unlawful-ferc-approval-natural-gas-pipeline

“EDF Sues FERC over Approval of Spire STL Pipeline.” Environmental Defense Fund. January 22, 2020. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/edf-sues-ferc-over-approval-spire-stl-pipeline

[vi] “MethaneSAT loses contact with satellite.” MethaneSAT. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://www.methanesat.org/project-updates/methanesat-loses-contact-satellite

[vii] “Environmental Defense Fund Incorporated.” (EIN: 11-6107128) ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Accessed February 3, 2026. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/116107128

[viii] “California’s Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant to be Replaced with Renewable Energy.” Environmental Defense Fund. June 21. 2016. Accessed February 4, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/californias-diablo-canyon-nuclear-plant-be-replaced-renewable-energy

[ix] “New York Gets Closer to a Clean Energy Future with New Environmental Commitments.” Environmental Defense Fund. January 10, 2017. Accessed February 4, 2026. https://www.edf.org/media/new-york-gets-closer-clean-energy-future-new-environmental-commitments

[x] Storrow, Benjamin. “3 states with shuttered nuclear plants see emissions rise.” E&E News. February 17, 2022. Accessed February 4, 2026. https://www.eenews.net/articles/3-states-with-shuttered-nuclear-plants-see-emissions-rise/

Source: https://capitalresearch.org/article/enemies-of-energy-environmental-defense-fund-edf/