For years, carbon dioxide has been the boogeyman of climate change, and with good reason. But the focus on CO2 has allowed other greenhouse gases to go unnoticed. Methane in particular – a potent greenhouse gas with more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide over a 20-year period – has been forgotten.
Lately, new science has helped policymakers realize that methane is not only a powerful climate threat, but also represents a crucial opportunity to rapidly slow the rate of warming. And the faster we act, the greater that opportunity.
Methane released into the air by humans is emitted by fossil fuel operations, agriculture, coal mining, landfills and other industries. It is also the main component of natural gas and is responsible for more than a quarter of global warming today, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.
The high potency of methane is a problem, but the bright side is that it dissipates into the atmosphere after about a decade, whereas carbon dioxide can last for centuries. This means that efforts to reduce methane emissions offer the fastest path to slowing global warming.
By cutting methane pollution from man-made sources as quickly as possible, scientists estimate that we could slow the rate of global warming by up to 30%.
New findings from my colleagues and I at the Environmental Defense Fund suggest that immediate action to reduce methane emissions, along with drastic cuts in CO2, can help preserve Arctic summer sea ice through 2100 and beyond. This is a critical climate milestone that can help preserve Arctic wildlife habitat and prevent further acceleration of warming.
Methane from fossil fuel production is often emitted along with other chemicals – such as volatile organic compounds – that contribute to ozone, another greenhouse gas. Therefore, reducing methane emissions can also help lower surface ozone levels, benefiting air quality and crop yields.
High-tech emissions tracking
Solutions are available and methane detection is critical. New technologies allow us to locate and measure methane emissions faster and more accurately than ever before. From drones and aircraft to a new generation of observation satellites, researchers and regulators are equipping themselves with the ability to see, in real time, where emissions are occurring – and who is responsible.
Next year, the Environmental Defense Fund’s new subsidiary, MethaneSAT, will launch its own satellite with the help of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. It will provide nearly real-time publicly available emissions data in higher resolution than ever before. We will be able to see online whether emitters are delivering on their promises to reduce methane emissions.
The first target: the global oil and gas system. In the US alone, oil and gas operators waste around 16 million metric tons of methane every year through leaks and flares. Flaring is the process of burning gas rather than letting it escape directly into the atmosphere, but research has shown that many flames malfunction or go out and are therefore a significant source of methane emissions. MethaneSAT will allow us to more effectively identify and verify these emissions.
Existing technologies — such as regularly checking equipment for leaks and malfunctions that lead to methane emissions — can help eliminate 75% of emissions from the oil and gas sector, according to the International Energy Agency. With today’s high energy prices, almost all of these solutions can be implemented at no net cost.
Of course, the methane challenge extends far beyond the United States. World leaders recognized the urgency and opportunity of methane reduction and began to take steps to capitalize on it.
Last fall, more than 100 countries signed the Global Methane Pledge, led by the US and Europe, agreeing to reduce their methane emissions by 30% by 2030. Since then, other countries have signed, with signatories now representing two-thirds of the global economy. . With the help of MethaneSAT, we can hold these countries accountable for their pledges to reduce methane.
Reducing methane emissions is the quickest, easiest and cheapest thing we can do to immediately slow the pace of climate change. Capturing all that methane could also help stabilize energy markets. For example, an analysis by my colleagues at EDF found that if we captured the methane that escapes through leaks and flares at US oil and gas sites, we could meet half of the gas supply the US has committed to Europe. .
Transformational technology is making this opportunity possible, ushering in a new era of evidence-based accountability and transparency, which is exactly what we need to address the climate challenge.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
