Scientists say that this invisible gas could close our destiny to climate change

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According to the United Nations Climate Change Panel, methane in the atmosphere is at least 800,000 years higher than ever before.

Scientists say methane emissions need to be reduced as the earth moves closer to pre-industrial levels at 1.5 degrees Celsius. Charles Coven, lead author of the IPCC report, attributed the rise to methane temperatures.

In the short term, the fastest way to mitigate some of the climate change we are seeing now is by reducing methane. “If we reduce methane emissions, it will take action to compensate for one of these heat sources.

If she stopped distributing carbon dioxide tomorrow, Covene would say, how long the gas will remain in the atmosphere will not cool down for many years. Methane depletion is the easiest mound to change in the next 10 years, he said.

The main part of the natural gas we use to heat our stoves and heat our homes is to produce methane by burning volcanoes and decomposing plants. But it has been introduced into the atmosphere in large quantities in landfills, animal husbandry, and the oil and gas industry.

It has been hailed as a “bridge fuel” that would turn the United States into renewable energy because natural gas is more efficient than coal and emits less carbon dioxide when burned. The most important natural gas for industry is abundant, and it is relatively inexpensive to extract it.

But fans of this new “purifier” gas have escaped a dangerous threat – it could leak into the atmosphere, burn and cause extreme heat.

Methane can leak from oil and natural gas wells, natural gas pipelines and the processing plant itself. According to the US Energy Information Administration, the United States has thousands of active wells for natural gas, millions of abandoned oil and gas wells, two million miles of natural gas pipelines, and several refineries.
According to a report by the Environmental Fund, one in three Americans lives in the same district as the oil and gas industry.
Until recently, it was difficult to keep track of where and how methane flows. Now, infrared cameras and advanced satellites can predict methane emissions around the world, allowing scientists and regulators to understand what is being released from facilities.
NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have previously told CNN that people will only stop using fossil fuels such as methane and greenhouse gases.

“For carbon dioxide, we have always known about power plants and chimneys, and so on, but with methane, until recently, we do not understand how a large number of large sources have affected reality,” said Robert Jackson. A professor of environmental sciences at Stanford University told CNN. “We don’t understand how long the tail has been and how important it is to reduce emissions.

The latest IPC assessment shows that scientists now have a better understanding of how much methane is being released in the agricultural and fossil fuels industry and how it is contributing to the climate crisis.

The release of fossil fuels, agriculture, and coal is declining worldwide. However, production and resources vary from region to region. In North America, most – 14% of total methane emissions – come from oil and gas, and cattle make up 10%. Coal is the largest methane driver in China, accounting for 24% of total emissions.

Although agriculture is a major source of methane, Jackson said emissions from agriculture and food production would be difficult to cope with.

“There are only a few things we can do with cattle,” says Jackson. “We can ask people to stop eating beef or we can try animal supplements to change the microbes in their liver chemistry. But this is not easy for billions of cattle worldwide.

The International Energy Agency estimates that the global oil and gas industry could reduce methane by 75% using existing technology. It is estimated that the seized natural gas could be sold there, which could reduce emissions by 40% at no additional cost.
Climate advocates such as Lisa Deville, a member of the Manda, Hidassa, and Arikara ethnic groups, are urging strict methane reduction. About 1,000 oil and gas wells discovered by scientists in 2016 around Fort Bertold, India, where the Bakken oil field in North Dakota is located, are pumping 275,000 tons of methane a year.

“This means that the land, which is part of my identity as a native woman, has been polluted and turned into an industrial zone,” Davel said. “This is unacceptable.”

As a groundwater team co-founder of Fort Bertold, Deville is taking the lead in environmental regulations. A.D. In 2018, the organization successfully sued the Trump administration’s land administration by repealing the critical methane waste law.

Global temperatures are now 1.1 degrees Fahrenheit[-1 ° C]and the planet is already experiencing severe fires, severe flooding, constant drought, and deadly waves.

The IPCC report makes it clear that stopping methane emissions is the key to delaying the planet from reaching 1.5 degrees. Scientists say world leaders must take immediate action to control not only carbon dioxide but also all greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate scientists have made an effort. Now the pressure is on COP26 leaders.

President Biden’s Special Climate Delegation John Kerry Senior Director and White House Relations Officer Rick Duke told RNC that methane reduction and methane emissions are a major concern for Biden’s management.

“There have already been some impressive developments in the field of methane cutting,” Duke said.

The pressure is already on. In June, Deville discussed ethnic issues, particularly methane emissions, with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Michael Reagan, quickly and equitably to clean energy.

What we are going to do in the next few years will determine what kind of world we have, what kind of world we will leave for our children. ” We need to convert to clean energy quickly, stop fossil fuels and then pour methane.

CNN’s Drew Khan and John Kife contributed to this report.

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