COP29: Emphasis on concrete emissions reduction measures rather than flowery commitments on methane

Over the past two years, a sophisticated system sent 1,200 warnings about methane leaks to governments and businesses, but only 1 percent received a response, a new United Nations report says.

Unveiling the report in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, on Friday, Inger Andersson, head of the UN Environment Program, warned that we now have a robust system (methane warning and response system), through which methane gas leak cases can be detected. And often they can be prevented with simple repairs.

The COP29 climate summit began in Baku on Monday, with representatives from various countries discussing climate finance and ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

What is methane?

According to the United Nations Environment Agency, human-caused methane emissions are responsible for about one-third of the current increase in global temperatures.

In this regard, rapidly reducing these emissions may prove to be the most cost-effective way to halt the pace of global temperature rise. It is also important in terms of avoiding damage caused by climate change.

Three sectors are mainly responsible for methane gas emitted from human activities: agriculture, waste, fossil fuels.

Coal mining contributes 12 percent of emissions from the fossil fuel industry. At the same time, it is 23 percent in oil and gas extraction, processing and distribution. About 20 percent of methane emissions are from the waste sector, which comes from wastewater and garbage dumps.

The agricultural sector accounts for 32 percent of emissions, with livestock grazing and other activities and rice cultivation accounting for about 8 percent.

According to one estimate, the amount of methane in the atmosphere is two and a half times higher than in the pre-industrial era, and emissions have been increasing in recent years.

Methane reduction measures

Methane is generally considered an ‘aggressive greenhouse gas’, but it is relatively easier to reduce than carbon dioxide (CO2) because it has a shorter lifetime in the atmosphere.

The International Methane Emissions Observatory and Leak Alert System, led by the UN Environment Agency, uses artificial intelligence (AI) and satellite data to detect gas emissions.

In addition, support is provided to industries and countries to address methane emissions.

UNEP chief Inger Andersen says governments and oil and gas companies need to stop paying lip service to this challenge, because the answers are right in front of them.