The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that methane emissions from the global energy sector turned out to be higher than according to official data – energy turned out to be 70 percent more dangerous for nature. The largest polluters are companies operating in the coal industry. This is stated in report on global methane emissions tracking for 2022.
In 2021, methane emissions from the energy sector increased by almost five percent compared to the previous year. Methane emissions from the coal industry amounted to 42 million tons, from the oil industry – 41 million tons, from the gas industry – 39 million tons. The report notes that in 2021, 40 percent of total methane emissions came from the energy sector. The largest polluter of the planet was the agricultural industry.
The IEA estimates that the amount of methane leaked in 2021 is equivalent to the amount of gas used in the energy sector in Europe. If last year all methane leaks were caught and sold, the world would receive 180 billion cubic meters of natural gas, according to IEA head Fatih Birol.
Related materials:
Methane is the main greenhouse gas after carbon. Reducing methane emissions could quickly curb global warming, as it breaks down in the atmosphere faster than carbon dioxide. The international organization said the world needs to intensify efforts to track leaks and introduce policy measures to reduce emissions.
“If by the end of this decade we can reduce anthropogenic methane emissions by 30 percent from today’s levels, this will have the same impact on temperature rise in the middle of the century as the transition of all cars, trucks, aircraft and ships of the world to zero-carbon technologies. emissions,” the IEA told the agency Reuters.
In 2019, at the UN Climate Change Conference, more than 100 countries joined the US and EU efforts to reduce methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030 from 2020 levels. However, the emissions are still strong – with the help of satellites, scientists have been able to detect more than 1,800 super-emissions of methane from oil and gas fields around the world. One of the countries that carry out the largest greenhouse emissions is Russia.
#World #energy #turned #dangerous #nature #percent