> Would be interesting to see if methane gas emissions can be actually detected
Obviously. But unlike in the video you need to actually use gas detectors instead of a thermal camera and look around the wellheads and gathering pipelines where the gas /is/ and not at some random compressor's engine exhaust heat. Fortunately the folks who maintain these things have qualified engineers who actually know how to use their equipment and the agencies who regulate them have standards that are actively monitored and enforced without requiring the oversight of well meaning old ladies with too much free time.
> why this has to be done in a residential area
Because it's where the field is, and you have to build gathering systems where the wells are. There is even more oil and gas infrastructure crammed into urban Los Angeles than there is in DFW though.