Methane is an underappreciated but potent greenhouse gas. How we deal with it will have a massive impact on averting the worst consequences of climate change Show
 The biggest source of methane is agriculture, mainly from livestock Jo-Anne McArthur on Unsplash After a year of weather extremes, there can no longer be any doubt that the climate is warming rapidly, and no doubt that carbon dioxide is slowly cooking the planet. But the immediate culprit is a different gas altogether: methane. A potent greenhouse gas, methane is largely responsible for the current rate of warming. It is thus a vital target in the fight to keep global temperature rises below the Paris Agreement’s goal of 1.5°C – as well as offering some … No commitment, cancel anytime* Offer ends 27/11/2022. *Cancel anytime within 14 days of payment to receive a refund on unserved issues. Existing subscribers, please log in with your email address to link your account access. Inclusive of applicable taxes (VAT) MORE FROM NEW SCIENTISTWhy the Colorado river is drying up – and what we can do about itThe Colorado river is the lifeblood of the US south-west, but today it is drastically depleted due to overuse, megadrought and climate change. Here’s how to rescue it COP27: Absence of clear vision stalled progress at climate conferenceA sense of stagnation pervaded the summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, as negotiators failed to reach agreement on key issues such as fossil fuel financing What are climate summits actually for, and how can we make them work?The lack of progress on cutting carbon emissions at COP27 has drawn criticism, but climate summits must provide deals that encourage nations to go green while still supporting economic growth Countries agree to create climate damage fund in historic COP27 dealDespite a landmark deal on finance for "loss and damage", the package agreed in Sharm El Sheikh falls short on plans to cut emissions and leaves room for the expansion of gas The biggest cause of global warming is all the carbon dioxide we’ve expelled into the atmosphere since the beginning of industrial times. The greenhouse gas traps heat in the atmosphere, raising temperatures on Earth. Even so, about one-quarter of the warming we’ve had so far is due to a less notorious greenhouse gas: methane, the major component of natural gas. Methane wasn’t much of a worry 20 years ago, but that’s changed since 2007, as methane emissions have accelerated, spiking in 2014 and again in 2018. Scientists still don’t know exactly what’s going on, and they face an urgent challenge to find out. Methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas than CO2, even though it only lasts about a decade in the atmosphere, whereas CO2 persists for a couple of centuries. A continued rise in the amount of methane in the air could easily cancel out any near-term progress we make in reducing CO2 emissions. Methane is the low-hanging fruit in the effort to combat planetary warming. This gas has also been in the news for political reasons, as the Donald Trump administration has moved to rescind rules requiring fossil fuel companies to monitor and fix methane leaks, despite many companies’ opposition. Fossil fuel production also contributes to methane emissions, and some studies have pointed to hydraulic fracturing, especially in the U.S., as the likely cause behind the recent spike in emissions. It’s certainly suspicious that fracking got underway in a big way around 2007, just as the methane surge began. However, other recent studies dispute this conclusion, and they suggest that U.S. methane emissions have changed little over the past 15 years. More worrying are other methane sources over which humans have much less control. An international consortium of researchers has been tracking emissions with detailed measurements in the Arctic, Europe and the tropics, as well as with modeling studies. What they have found suggests that the methane surge since 2007 appears to be mostly the result of increased biogenic emissions, predominantly in the tropics. Among several factors, this activity has been accelerated by warming temperatures and increased rainfall causing the expansion of tropical wetlands. Further increases in emissions come from agricultural animals, including cows, sheep and goats. Reversing this trend in methane emissions is now probably the most urgent challenge in the fight against global warming, even more than the ongoing need to tackle CO2 emissions. An important assessment published recently offers mixed views on what can be done. The bad news is that reducing emissions from swamped wetlands and cows may be virtually impossible. But there’s good news, too. Many other sources of methane shouldn’t be too hard to tackle, especially emissions from production of coal and gas, urban gas leaks, landfills and sewage plants. New technological devices such as vehicle-mounted leak detectors and drones are making it much easier to locate the biggest sources of emissions, which can then be eliminated. Landfills can be covered. Fuel industries must also recognize the need to reduce leaks of natural gas to preserve its reputation as a green energy source. Methane emissions can also be reduced by not burning crop waste, as is common in Africa and in South and East Asia. Our success in tackling CO2 emissions has been abysmal. After 40 years of debate, emissions last year were higher than ever before. But methane is another problem that is perhaps even more urgent. Sadly, if we can’t reduce methane emissions, any tentative progress we do make on carbon dioxide will be canceled out.-Bloomberg Also read: Climate change doesn’t just cost us the environment, but a pretty penny too Which is more harmful CO2 or methane?Methane is more than 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. Over the last two centuries, methane concentrations in the atmosphere have more than doubled, largely due to human-related activities.
How much methane is equivalent to CO2?84 x – methane (CH4) – I.e. Releasing 1 kg of CH4 into the atmosphere is about equivalent to releasing 84 kg of CO2. Methane's 100-year GWP is about 28x CO2 – but it only persists in the atmosphere for a little more than a decade.
Is methane The most toxic greenhouse gas?The current average global temperature is already 1.1°C higher than that of the pre-industrial era. And all because of the rise in greenhouse gases. Emissions released into the air since the mid-19th century are having catastrophic repercussions on the planet.
How many more times potent is methane than CO2?Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas contributor to climate change following carbon dioxide. On a 100-year timescale, methane has 28 times greater global warming potential than carbon dioxide and is 84 times more potent on a 20-year timescale.
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How much more harmful is methane than co2
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