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UN Launches
Satellite System To Track Methane Emissions
The United Nations is launching a
satellite-based system to detect and track global methane emissions as
part of efforts to reduce emissions of methane, which is a more potent
greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
During the COP27 climate summit in
Egypt’s Sharm El Sheikh, the UN Environment Programme
announced on Friday it would launch the Methane Alert and Response
System (MARS), a data-to-action platform that is expected to allow
UNEP to corroborate emissions reported by companies and characterize
changes over time. MARS will be implemented with partners including
the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the UNEP-hosted Climate and
Clean Air Coalition, UNEP said in a statement.
MARS will be the first publicly available
global system and it will use high-tech satellite data to identify
major emission events, notify relevant stakeholders, and support and
track mitigation progress.
“Beginning with very large point sources
from the energy sector, MARS will integrate data from the rapidly
expanding system of methane-detecting satellites to include
lower-emitting area sources and more frequent detection,” UNEP said.
Methane, the second-most abundant
anthropogenic greenhouse gas, accounts for around 20
percent of global emissions and is more than 25 times as potent as
carbon dioxide (CO2) at trapping heat in the atmosphere, according to
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Methane concentrations in the atmosphere
have more than doubled over the last two centuries, predominantly due
to human-related activities. China, the United States, Russia, India,
Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Mexico are estimated to be responsible
for nearly half of all anthropogenic methane emissions, according to
the agency.
“Reducing methane emissions can make a
big and rapid difference, as this gas leaves the atmosphere far
quicker than carbon dioxide,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director
of UNEP.
“As UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report showed
before this climate summit, the world is far off track on efforts to
limit global warming to 1.5°C,” Andersen added.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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