tag:theconversation.com,2011:/es/topics/global-methane-pledge-112346/articlesGlobal Methane Pledge – The Conversation2023-05-19T15:31:08Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2059412023-05-19T15:31:08Z2023-05-19T15:31:08ZMethane must fall to slow global heating – but only 13% of emissions are actually regulated<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527225/original/file-20230519-25-zvvx4a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3000%2C1998&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Methane leaks across oil and gas supply chains are speeding up climate change.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/gas-flare-oil-refinery-kimanissabahmalaysia-35-652862944">Hkhtt HJ/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Methane – a potent greenhouse gas and the second biggest driver of global warming after carbon dioxide (CO₂) – had its moment in the spotlight in 2021. Over 100 countries signed on to <a href="https://theconversation.com/cop26-a-global-methane-pledge-is-great-but-only-if-it-doesnt-distract-us-from-co-cuts-171069">the Global Methane Pledge</a> to cut emissions by 30% compared to 2020 levels by 2030. </p>
<p>This is a useful goal, but our <a href="https://authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S2590332223001951">new research</a> shows that something is still missing: stringent policies to eliminate methane emissions.</p>
<p>Our study is the first global review of methane policies which have been adopted across the world since the 1970s. It reveals that only around 13% of man-made methane emissions from the biggest sources (agriculture, energy and waste) is regulated by policies capable of controlling and preventing them. </p>
<p>This falls to 10% if we take a conservative view of the total emissions and regions covered by specific policies and whether they have been fully or partially implemented. </p>
<p>These policies may mandate companies to find and fix methane leaks, install equipment which can capture emissions, charge them for every unit of methane released or reward them for making use of methane, like extracting biogas from rotting food and other organic waste. Our study showed that the majority (70%) of policies have been adopted in the US and Europe.</p>
<p>Methane is over 80 times more powerful in trapping heat in Earth’s atmosphere than CO₂ but lasts for a much shorter time. Since methane in the air breaks down within about a decade (compared to centuries for CO₂), phasing out emissions could rapidly reduce the rate at which the planet is heating. </p>
<p>For any hope of meeting global climate targets, deep methane reductions are needed immediately. Our research shows that countries which have committed to deep cuts must now expand and strengthen policies for eliminating their emissions. The remaining countries should step up their efforts on methane too. </p>
<h2>Regulation varies by sector</h2>
<p>We systematically examined policies which have been introduced in 79 countries to reduce methane emissions across farming, solid and liquid waste management and the energy sectors (including the extraction, transportation and consumption of fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas). </p>
<p>Motivations for regulating methane varied. Not only does the gas contribute to climate change, but it can also generate tropospheric ozone – a harmful air pollutant. Methane is also a safety hazard if its concentration in the air reaches an explosive range (5-15%). </p>
<p>But if it is captured, methane becomes a source of energy as the major component of natural gas. And so regulating methane, for example by incentivising the capture of methane from coalbeds, can be cheap and useful. </p>
<p>How effective such policies have been is far from clear though, as countries do not tend to quantify their emissions using direct measurements.</p>
<p>Regulations are more frequently used to address fossil (oil, gas and coal) rather than biogenic (livestock, solid and liquid waste) sources of methane. In fact, 41% of all policies targeted methane from coal mines and oil refineries, compared with 25% for farms and landfills. </p>
<p>Taxes and charges, on the quantities of waste for example, are more common for regulating biogenic sources whereas financial incentives, like feed-in tariffs for electricity generated from captured coal mine methane, are more frequently used in fossil methane policies.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An aerial view of a landfill with two rubbish trucks." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527230/original/file-20230519-27-j85mbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rotting waste is a major source of methane.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/garbage-truck-unloads-rubbish-landfill-waste-2234855297">Maksim Safaniuk/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Policies targeting methane emissions from the oil and gas sector tend to be more stringent than those targeting coal mines. Similarly, policies targeting methane emissions from solid and liquid waste are more stringent than those addressing livestock emissions. </p>
<p>These divergent approaches to regulating different methane sources may be the result of opposition from the fossil fuel and agricultural industries. The relative importance of these industries to national and regional economies and energy and food supply may also explain why government regulation has so far proved inadequate.</p>
<h2>Where regulation must improve</h2>
<p>More stringent policies and a consistent approach for quantifying how much methane is being emitted from each source will be key to bringing regulation in line with global commitments. </p>
<p>Improving the monitoring of methane emissions is particularly important for enabling deeper cuts. Historically, methane emissions have been difficult and costly to measure, partly because it is an invisible gas and compared to CO₂, only minor emissions cause substantial warming. </p>
<p>However, methane reduction is still often perceived by policymakers as a choice rather than a necessary complement to ongoing decarbonisation efforts focused on CO₂.</p>
<p>Within almost every sector there are major methane sources that have been largely overlooked. These include the digestive gases of cows and other livestock, methane from the ventilation shafts of coal mines, high-emitting sources in the oil and gas sector (so called super-emitters), and from abandoned mines and oil and gas wells. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Three cows staring into a camera." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527229/original/file-20230519-25-y3jm9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">High-methane foods are enough on their own to drive warming past 1.5°C.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/holstein-friesian-cows-staring-into-camera-1450278809">Helen Rickard/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the energy sector, emissions from non-operated joint ventures are particularly neglected by regulation. This is a type of business structure where a company owns an equity interest without assuming day-to-day operational control. </p>
<p>These are usually owned by major oil and gas companies, but operated by local partners – national oil and gas firms in developing countries are a prime example. Supply chains are another important source, particularly with internationally-traded commodities like liquefied natural gas (LNG) and coking coal used in steelmaking.</p>
<p>In the oil and gas sector, where methane may be more cost-effective to reduce because the captured gas could be monetised, global commitments like the Paris Agreement require the industry’s own emissions to fall alongside falling demand for fossil fuels across all economies. </p>
<p>As Dr Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, <a href="https://www.iea.org/commentaries/cop28-is-a-moment-of-truth-for-the-oil-and-gas-industry-s-efforts-on-climate">recently put it</a>, the next UN climate change conference (COP28) in the United Arab Emirates will be “a moment of truth” for both oil- and gas-rich countries and the industries exploiting these climate-damaging fuels.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
<br><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeTop">Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead.</a> Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeBottom">Join the 10,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.</a></em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205941/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maria Olczak consults for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Balcombe has received funding from oil and gas companies, environmental NGOs and research councils.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andris Piebalgs does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Major sources, like oil and gas ‘super-emitters’, are almost entirely neglected by regulations.Maria Olczak, PhD Candidate, School of Engineering and Materials Science, Queen Mary University of LondonAndris Piebalgs, Part-time Professor, Florence School of Regulation, European University InstitutePaul Balcombe, Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering and Renewable Energy, Queen Mary University of LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1942392022-11-11T16:19:33Z2022-11-11T16:19:33ZMethane: war and international tensions make cutting potent greenhouse gas emissions harder<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494883/original/file-20221111-23-clggxn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4152%2C2484&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/gas-flare-burn-on-offshore-platform-190268201">Corlaffra/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>US president Joe Biden has <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/11/11/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-new-initiatives-at-cop27-to-strengthen-u-s-leadership-in-tackling-climate-change/">announced</a> new oil and gas industry regulations, which his administration claims will plunge emissions of the greenhouse gas methane 87% below 2005 levels. This is part of an update to the <a href="https://www.globalmethanepledge.org/#about">Global Methane Pledge</a>, a US-EU initiative announced at COP26, last year’s UN climate summit in Glasgow.</p>
<p>Trumpeted as essential to meeting the 2015 Paris agreement’s goal of limiting global temperature rise, the pledge aims to slow <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019RG000675">rising methane concentrations</a> in the atmosphere. But in the 12 months since the global pledge was announced, war in Ukraine and fraying international relations have made achieving this goal more uncertain.</p>
<p>Also announced at COP27, the current summit in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, was a new programme using satellites to alert governments and companies of large methane leaks. The UK, along with the EU, Japan, Canada, Norway and the US have also made a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/11/11/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-new-initiatives-at-cop27-to-strengthen-u-s-leadership-in-tackling-climate-change/">joint declaration</a> to reduce emissions from fossil fuel importers and exporters.</p>
<p>Methane is a far more powerful greenhouse gas than CO₂. Though it will typically linger for <a href="https://gml.noaa.gov/education/info_activities/pdfs/CTA_the_methane_cycle.pdf">nine years</a> compared with <a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/news/2915/the-atmosphere-getting-a-handle-on-carbon-dioxide/#:%7E:text=Carbon%20dioxide%20is%20a%20different,timescale%20of%20many%20human%20lives.">centuries</a> for CO₂, a molecule of methane will heat the atmosphere around 80 times more over a 20-year period. </p>
<p>Since methane molecules are destroyed quite rapidly in the atmosphere, how much of the gas accumulates to trap the sun’s heat will depend on recent sources. Earth’s climate responds to any changes in emissions within decades. So cutting methane emissions anywhere – oil and gas infrastructure, livestock farms, landfills – can slow the rate of global warming quite rapidly. </p>
<p>It’s methane leaking from storage tanks and pipelines (so-called fugitive emissions) which is of particular concern for the oil and gas industry and its emissions. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/search?q=global+methane+pledge">The Global Methane Pledge</a>, which 130 countries signed at COP26, sought a 30% reduction in emissions based on their 2020 level by 2030. The ambition is to shave 0.2°C off of total warming by 2050. </p>
<p>Some experts say this is an <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-the-global-methane-pledge-needs-to-go-further-to-help-limit-warming-to-1-5c/">overestimate</a> and that only halving methane emissions could reduce total warming by 0.2°C. Nevertheless, the quick results for the climate of reducing methane emissions could <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-new-global-methane-pledge-can-buy-time-while-the-world-drastically-reduces-fossil-fuel-use-171182">buy time</a> for the trickier task of reining in CO₂.</p>
<p>So is it possible to cut methane emissions by a third in a decade? In the mid-1990s, Russia cut around <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature05132">1 million tonnes</a> of methane from its fossil fuel sector’s annual emissions by upgrading and tightening leaky gas pipelines. But this amounted to just over 1% of total global methane emissions from the fossil fuel industry, which averaged 95 million tonnes each year during the <a href="https://www.globalcarbonproject.org/global/pdf/pep/Kirschke2013_3DecadesMethane.pdf">1990s</a>, and which hit <a href="https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/12/1561/2020/#section5">111 million tonnes</a> annually by 2020. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A red valve on yellow gas distribution pipes." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494885/original/file-20221111-24-vi3ux5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The oil and gas industry has not done enough to address fugitive methane emissions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/gas-tap-pipeline-system-natural-station-1784363033">PHOTOCREO Michal Bednarek/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This also happened at a time when globalisation was increasing the interdependence of the international community. That came at the expense of nation states’ control over their energy supplies in many cases, best illustrated by Germany’s dependence on Russian gas. </p>
<p>Today, western sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine have precipitated a scramble for other sources of gas. The recent sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines that carried natural gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea showed how casually states can destroy gas distribution infrastructure for geopolitical gain, regardless of the climate consequences. </p>
<p>One recent estimate put the total methane emissions from the resulting leak at up to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666498422000667">a quarter of a million tonnes</a>. While this is the largest individual methane gas leak ever recorded, more than twice the estimated 100,000 tonnes emitted by the 2015 Aliso Canyon gas leak in California, it remains small as a proportion of total annual global methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector.</p>
<p>Methane leaks such as the Nord Stream sabotage may not make a huge difference to global emissions on their own. But they do signal, despite new announcements to cut methane and police similarly large leaks, how readily realpolitik trumps international concern about preserving a liveable climate, particularly at a time of geopolitical re-balancing and rising international tensions.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
<br><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeTop">Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead.</a> Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeBottom">Join the 10,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.</a></em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194239/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Vincent Gauci receives funding from the Natural Environment Research Council and the Royal Society. </span></em></p>An update to the 2021 Global Methane Pledge could see tighter restrictions on oil and gas leaks.Vincent Gauci, Professorial Fellow, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Science, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1734852021-12-13T01:07:15Z2021-12-13T01:07:15ZCourts around the world have made strong climate rulings – not so in New Zealand<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437047/original/file-20211212-104971-3b3mt3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C69%2C5160%2C3375&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source"> Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>New Zealand made two important climate commitments at the COP26 summit last month — to <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/climate-change-conference-emissions-to-be-cut-by-50-per-cent-below-2005-levels-by-2030/WRDDTBYBIRDSOTQSDP7UH6KWLI/">halve emissions by 2030</a> and to join the <a href="https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/nz-joins-global-initiative-tackle-methane">global methane pledge</a> to cut methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030.</p>
<p>But what happens if these pledges are inadequate for the climate emergency we face? And how can we ensure future climate commitments are bold enough, and actually fully met, to bring about the transformation necessary to limit global warming to 1.5°C?</p>
<p>One response is <a href="https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/climate-change-litigation-is-heating-up-2211098/">climate litigation</a>, the use of courts to compel governments and corporations to take greater action to mitigate climate change. </p>
<p>The number of climate-related court cases is increasing around the world. In some countries, it has achieved strong rulings, but in New Zealand, the courts recently pushed the responsibility back to policymakers. </p>
<p>New Zealand’s international pledges join obligations in domestic legislation, including the much vaunted <a href="https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2019/0061/latest/LMS183848.html#LMS183790">Zero Carbon Act</a>, which commits to reduce emissions (excluding methane from livestock) to net zero by 2050.</p>
<p>They also have to be matched against the <a href="https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0040/latest/DLM158584.html?search=ts_act%40bill%40regulation%40deemedreg_Climate+Change+Response+Act_resel_25_a&p=1">Climate Change Response Act</a>, which sets requirements around emissions budgets.</p>
<p>New Zealand’s pledge to cut domestic emissions by half by the end of this decade reflects the country’s revised commitment under the Paris Agreement, known as a Nationally Determined Contribution (<a href="https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/nationally-determined-contributions-ndcs/nationally-determined-contributions-ndcs">NDC</a>). It has already been criticised for its over-reliance on purchasing carbon credits from overseas. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cop26-new-zealands-new-climate-pledge-is-a-step-up-but-not-a-fair-share-170932">COP26: New Zealand's new climate pledge is a step up, but not a 'fair share'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The government’s commitment to “play its part” towards the global methane pledge may also be weaker than the promise suggests. It will likely mainly involve meeting its pre-existing target to cut methane emissions from livestock by 10% (on 2017 levels) by 2030. </p>
<p>The consequences of insufficient ambition globally will be felt at home. New Zealand’s natural environment will continue to degrade and climate instability become more severe.</p>
<h2>Court action brings some progress</h2>
<p>In various jurisdictions, climate litigation is achieving notable progress in environmental protection and forcing stronger action on emissions cuts. Just in 2021, court rulings in France, Australia and the Netherlands show the potential climate litigation has to bring significant change. </p>
<p>In May this year, in an action brought by eight children regarding plans to expand a coal mine, the Australian federal court <a href="https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/climate-change-litigation-is-heating-up-2211098/">agreed</a> the government has a duty of care to protect young people from climate change. The court held that common law should impose responsibility on those who do harm through atmospheric pollution.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/in-a-landmark-judgment-the-federal-court-found-the-environment-minister-has-a-duty-of-care-to-young-people-161650">In a landmark judgment, the Federal Court found the environment minister has a duty of care to young people</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>However, in New Zealand the courts recently declined to offer significant, let alone transformational, legal remedies for similar harm. They were not persuaded that using common law doctrines was suitable for this purpose. Instead, they signalled the response should come from appropriate regulation.</p>
<p>The case of <a href="https://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/cases/smith-v-fonterra-co-operative-group-limited">Smith v Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd 2021</a> was the first in New Zealand to target corporates for their greenhouse gas emissions. Mike Smith, spokesperson for the Climate Change Iwi Group, brought a claim against seven New Zealand companies. The claim was based on three points: public nuisance, negligence and breach of duty of care.</p>
<p>The High Court struck out the public nuisance and negligence claims in March 2020. The case proceeded to the Court of Appeal regarding the novel duty of care claim.
But the court was not persuaded this novel duty of care should be created for the purpose of requiring a small number of emitters to comply with more onerous requirements than those imposed by statute. </p>
<p>The court said such private litigation, if successful, would be a costly and inefficient response to climate change nationally and arbitrary in its impact. Instead of using tort law, the Court of Appeal stated climate change “calls for a sophisticated regulatory response at a national level supported by international co-ordination”.</p>
<h2>Litigation isn’t an ideal response to climate change</h2>
<p>Meanwhile, Lawyers for Climate Action New Zealand (<a href="https://www.lawyersforclimateaction.nz/about-us">LCANZI</a>) have begun a judicial review of the Climate Change Commission’s recommendations to government on carbon budgets and other measures to reduce emissions.</p>
<p>LCANZI’s statement of claim emphasises the need for domestic laws to be interpreted consistently with the <a href="https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/english_paris_agreement.pdf">Paris Agreement</a>, the right to life (in the <a href="https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1990/0109/latest/DLM224792.html?src=qs">New Zealand Bill of Rights Act</a>), Te Tiriti o Waitangi principles (in particular the exercise of rangatiratanga) and tikanga Māori.</p>
<p>The outcome of this case remains to be seen. But following the decision in Smith v Fonterra, it’s important to concede litigation isn’t an ideal response to the climate crisis and won’t guarantee success. An effective “sophisticated regulatory response” would be preferable.</p>
<p>Whatever happens in the LCANZI case, its emphasis on integrating international law, human rights, treaty obligations and tikanga Māori offers a vision of how we might pursue ambitious climate change action. </p>
<p>The challenge will be to design regulation that is both robust enough to ensure all obligations (international and domestic) are sufficiently ambitious to achieve environmental protection and sophisticated enough to articulate the unique context of Aotearoa. But in the face of a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/02/new-zealand-declares-a-climate-change-emergency">climate emergency</a>, it’s worth trying.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173485/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathan Cooper does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In several countries, court rulings have forced governments to make stronger cuts to emissions. But New Zealand courts have so far stayed clear of imposing legal steps, calling for regulation instead.Nathan Cooper, Associate Professor of Law, University of WaikatoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1718392021-11-17T03:02:34Z2021-11-17T03:02:34ZStemming methane leaks from oil fields, pipelines and landfills could help us slow global warming quickly<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432285/original/file-20211116-25-1n9sw2f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C80%2C2991%2C1913&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">David McNew/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Climate change is happening, and it’s mostly due to human activities that change the composition of the atmosphere, which in turn interferes with the natural flow of energy through the climate system. </p>
<p>Two greenhouse gases contribute most to this problem: carbon dioxide and methane. The result is global heating. The repercussions of rising temperatures include heavier rains, stronger storms, more intense droughts, heatwaves and wildfires. </p>
<p>Methane, which is more potent than carbon dioxide but has a shorter lifespan, reached record levels in the atmosphere last year, at about 2.5 times above those during the pre-industrial era. </p>
<p>Reducing methane emissions offers a way to rein in climate change quickly, at least to some extent, and to buy time while the world drastically reduces fossil fuel use. </p>
<p>The COP26 climate summit recognised this when more than 100 nations, representing 70% of the global economy, joined the <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5766">Global Methane Pledge</a> to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030.</p>
<p>New Zealand joined, but Australia didn’t. Nearly all of the pledges relate to cuts in “fugitive emissions” of methane through leaks in the oil and gas sector, especially from fracking operations during the drilling of new wells and from old, abandoned wells that have not been sealed properly. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-new-global-methane-pledge-can-buy-time-while-the-world-drastically-reduces-fossil-fuel-use-171182">The new Global Methane Pledge can buy time while the world drastically reduces fossil fuel use</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Methane on the rise again</h2>
<p>Methane is a primary component of natural gas. It is emitted into the atmosphere from oil and natural gas wells and <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/13072021/epa-struggles-to-track-methane-emissions-from-landfills-heres-why-it-matters/">landfills</a>. Surplus methane is often burned or vented into the atmosphere. </p>
<p>Coal mining, sewage ponds and various industrial processes contribute lesser amounts.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="This figure shows the global rise in methane emissions (shown in monthly values in parts per billion by volume in red, with a 12-month rolling average in black." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432058/original/file-20211115-19-4ue1so.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This figure shows the global rise in methane emissions (shown in monthly values in parts per billion by volume in red, with a 12-month rolling average in black.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Adapted from NOAA</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Globally, oil and gas operations account for 26% of methane emissions. Methane concentrations levelled off between 2000 and 2008, suggesting the short average lifetime of the gas depleted it from the atmosphere at about the rate of emissions. </p>
<p>But since then, methane levels have increased again, and this appears to be largely due to fracking and related activities in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JD033948">oil and gas industry</a>.</p>
<h2>Reducing fugitive emissions makes economic sense</h2>
<p>In a recent <a href="https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abf9c8">study</a>, <a href="https://www.edf.org/people/ilissa-ocko">climate scientist Ilissa Ocko</a> and colleagues suggest rapidly cutting methane can slow global warming quickly, and cuts can be made at a profit because they reduce leaks. </p>
<p>The research team considered all sectors and found 85% of methane emissions from the oil and gas industry could be readily abated by 2030 (50% are economically feasible, further 35% are technically feasible). For landfills, the respective numbers are 80% (16% and 64%). </p>
<p>In New Zealand, livestock is the main source of methane emissions, known as biogenic methane. The above research found only 32% of biogenic methane emissions could be cut readily (and only 2% are economically feasible, 30% technically possible). Livestock emissions are more manageable in feedlots, used in the northern hemisphere in winter, but more difficult for free-range cattle and sheep. </p>
<p>There are some optimistic reports about how biogenic methane emissions could be cut by changing the <a href="https://www.feednavigator.com/Article/2021/11/12/Belfast-based-researchers-explore-potential-of-seaweed-feed-to-slash-methane-emissions-in-cows">feed of cows</a>, treating <a href="https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/11/new-kiwi-technology-cuts-farmers-pond-methane-emissions-almost-completely.html">effluent ponds</a> and using <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/126890300/methane-burned-off-at-wellington-tip-rather-than-powering-1000-homes">methane from landfills</a> to generate electricity. </p>
<h2>Tracking emissions</h2>
<p>Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (<a href="https://unfccc.int/">UNFCCC</a>), countries have to report their emissions. But a recent <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2021/greenhouse-gas-emissions-pledges-data/">report</a> revealed a gap between countries’ reported emissions and observed increases in concentrations in the atmosphere. This also applies to methane emissions, although <a href="https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-1561-2020">natural emissions</a> also play a role. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/countries-may-be-under-reporting-their-greenhouse-gas-emissions-thats-why-accurate-monitoring-is-crucial-171645">Countries may be under-reporting their greenhouse gas emissions – that’s why accurate monitoring is crucial</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Recent technology on satellites has enabled large emissions to be detected from space, and from next year <a href="https://www.methanesat.org/">MethaneSat</a> is expected to be able to pinpoint even smaller emission sources. A US team will use the MethaneSat programme to focus on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, while New Zealand will be mission control for the <a href="https://www.mbie.govt.nz/science-and-technology/space/space-related-opportunities-in-new-zealand/methanesat-mission/">space-based tracking of agricultural emissions</a>.</p>
<p>Spurious methane emissions were recently especially prominent in <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/11/01/satellites-detect-massive-russia-methane-leak-bloomberg-a75410">Russia</a>, where 164 tonnes of methane leaked into the atmosphere during a single hour of repairs on a pipeline owned by state-controlled gas giant Gazprom, and in <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-11/coal-mines-seen-belching-worst-australia-methane-cloud-this-year">Australia</a>. </p>
<p>While most methane emissions in New Zealand and Australia come from agriculture, Australia’s fugitive emissions from various mines are large, more than all of New Zealand’s contributions combined.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="This figure shows 2016 methane emissions for Australia (AU) and New Zealand (NZ), from different sectors (in million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions)." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432136/original/file-20211116-25-74x407.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This figure shows 2016 methane emissions for Australia (AU) and New Zealand (NZ), from different sectors (in million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://ourworldindata.org/emissions-by-sector#annual-greenhouse-gas-emissions-by-sector">Adapted from Our World in Data</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Recent and future prospects</h2>
<p>Since 2016, Australia has made a <a href="https://www.industry.gov.au/sites/default/files/August%202021/document/quarterly_update_of_australias_national_greenhouse_gas_inventory_-_march_2021.pdf">modest reduction in fugitive emissions</a> because of increased use of renewable energy and slightly reduced coal production. The COVID pandemic has also played a role. </p>
<p>Ilissa Ocko’s team concluded that rapid deployment of available technologies and strategies could <a href="https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abf9c8">cut anticipated global methane emissions</a> by 57% in 2030, if action is taken promptly.</p>
<p>In New Zealand, many changes are desirable for other reasons, including land use and biodiversity protection. But it does not make sense to get out of step with other countries, which aren’t reducing methane from livestock, as that could put New Zealand farmers at a disadvantage. </p>
<p>In particular, New Zealand should not be too far out of step with Australia. Instead, the New Zealand government should step up its efforts to call the Australian government to account to substantively reduce all greenhouse gas emissions, especially fugitive methane emissions.</p>
<p>A price on carbon, created through a tax or carbon markets and designed to capture the cost of damages through climate change, may be enforced internationally through tariffs. This could be particularly critical for power generators and energy-intensive industries. </p>
<p>New Zealand has an <a href="https://www.motu.nz/assets/Documents/our-work/environment-and-agriculture/climate-change-mitigation/emissions-trading/ETS-Explanation-August-2018.pdf">Emissions Trading Scheme</a>, but agricultural emissions are excluded. </p>
<p>Australian industry is especially vulnerable. Although many companies are making serious plans to adapt, their timeline is too long, with no prospect for containing global warming to 1.5°C (above pre-industrial average temperatures).</p>
<p>While much more could be done with respect to methane emissions, notably in some countries, the longer term challenge remains the need to make substantial cuts to carbon dioxide emissions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171839/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kevin Trenberth does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Reducing methane emissions could slow global warming quickly and buy time for the world to wean itself off fossil fuels. But it must not distract from the challenge to cut carbon dioxide emissions.Kevin Trenberth, Distinguished Scholar, National Center for Atmospheric Research Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1714102021-11-09T14:57:39Z2021-11-09T14:57:39ZCOP26: Two worlds talked past each other – or never even met<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/431016/original/file-20211109-21-1j44min.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Delegates arrive at the COP26 climate summit on November 4, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland.
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>At the <a href="https://ukcop26.org/">2021 UN climate change conference</a> in Glasgow, moving between the corporate slickness of the official “Blue Zone” (a UN-managed space which hosts the negotiations) and the wider fringe was quite a disconcerting experience for me. These were two different worlds. Everyone was committed to saving the planet, but there were highly diverging views about how to do it.</p>
<p>A welter of announcements on everything from <a href="https://unfccc.int/news/end-of-coal-in-sight-at-cop26">coal</a> to <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-59137828">methane</a> to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/01/biden-bolsonaro-and-xi-among-leaders-agreeing-to-end-deforestation-aoe">forests</a> dominated the opening days. Large numbers were discussed and ambitious targets were set. The bottom line was keeping alive the <a href="https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement/key-aspects-of-the-paris-agreement">Paris agreement</a> to pursue efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C, while assuring a ‘transition’ to a low-carbon future.</p>
<p>The contradictions were all too apparent at this year’s conference, known as COP26. The hired exhibition spaces in the conference centre were hosted by fossil fuel polluting countries and sponsored by large corporations. Corporate spin, also known as greenwash, abounded. There were a few African delegations with their own space and a vanishingly few civil society voices in the main venue.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the discourse was very different in parallel fora. Here the talk was of <a href="https://twitter.com/cop26_coalition/status/1455581844079058944?s=12">inequality, climate justice and reparations</a>. The focus was on radical transformations of systems of production and consumption. Many were critical of business-led and market-based solutions to climate change.</p>
<p>There was passion, commitment and a real sense of anger and frustration about the main conference. Huge suspicion around the corporate takeover of the climate agenda swirled, with much commentary on the <a href="https://www.euronews.com/green/2021/10/28/the-uk-has-40-new-fossil-fuel-projects-in-the-pipeline-what-does-this-mean-for-cop26-credi">double standards</a> of the UK hosts, still proposing a new coalmine and oilfield as part of a so-called ‘transition’.</p>
<p>Unlike a decade ago, there was no climate scepticism on show. But how to address the underlying causes of climate change in capitalism remains the big, unaddressed challenge.</p>
<h2>Pastoralists’ perspectives</h2>
<p>As a researcher working on pastoralism as part of <a href="https://pastres.org">a European Research Council funded project</a>, I was at the COP together with a delegation of pastoralists from different parts of the world, all linked to the <a href="https://www.euronews.com/green/2021/10/28/the-uk-has-40-new-fossil-fuel-projects-in-the-pipeline-what-does-this-mean-for-cop26-credi">World Alliance for Mobile Indigenous Pastoralist Peoples</a>. We were definitely on the fringe of the fringe. </p>
<p>We hosted <a href="https://twitter.com/PASTRES_erc/status/1454091070988558345">a photo exhibition</a> exploring pastoralists’ own perceptions of climate change and uncertainty from across the world. We engaged in a dialogue with <a href="https://www.nourishscotland.org/campaigns/cop26-and-food-systems/recipes-for-resilience-at-cop26/">Scottish farmers and food groups</a>, focusing on the future of livestock production under climate change. And our ‘<a href="https://twitter.com/PASTRES_erc/status/1455988353468338186">sheep for the climate’ action</a> brought a group together to discuss why livestock are not always bad for the planet, together with some fine rare breed sheep.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cows-and-cars-should-not-be-conflated-in-climate-change-debates-171024">Cows and cars should not be conflated in climate change debates</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>When I managed to find a few events in the Blue Zone (not an easy task) relating to our research, they were mostly extremely disappointing. There were parallel conversations going on. If climate change is genuinely a shared challenge for all of humanity, dialogue between different viewpoints is vital.</p>
<p>Within the main conference, there was much talk about trees and ‘nature-based solutions’ across multiple sessions, for instance. The mainstream media hailed the agreement on deforestation, but <a href="https://leafcoalition.org/">a significant part</a> of this simply replicates the failed programmes of the past. Under such programmes, forest protection in the global south is used as <a href="https://pastres.org/2021/10/15/why-carbon-offsetting-through-tree-planting-wont-help-solve-the-climate-crisis/">carbon offsets</a> for large polluting companies and rich, consuming publics in the north. </p>
<p>The huge ecosystem restoration efforts being proposed potentially cause <a href="https://pastres.org/2021/09/10/tree-planting-schemes-can-destroy-rangelands-and-damage-pastoral-livelihoods/">real problems for pastoralists</a>. This is because large areas of open rangelands are earmarked for tree planting and biodiversity protection through exclusion. These so-called <a href="https://www.foei.org/news/nature-based-solutions-a-wolf-in-sheeps-clothing">nature-based solutions</a> are frequently new forms of colonialism, opening the gates to ‘<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03066150.2012.671770">green grabbing’</a>, where land and resources are appropriated in the name of environmental conservation. </p>
<p>Methane was also a hot topic. The huge reductions in emissions proposed under the <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5766">Global Methane Pledge</a> have major implications for livestock production. Yet a session I attended was obsessed only with technical solutions -– feed additives, methane-reducing inhibitors and vaccines, seaweed supplements, even face masks for cows. </p>
<p>Once again, livestock systems were lumped together, without differentiating between highly polluting industrial systems and more climate-friendly extensive systems, such as African pastoralism. Indeed, many of the solutions proposed are already being practised in <a href="https://pastres.org/2021/10/29/climate-change-we-need-to-talk-about-methane/">extensive grazing systems</a>. The problem I guess is that these practices could not be patented and sold by agribusinesses.</p>
<h2>Climate and capitalism</h2>
<p>So how do these two worlds intersect? Everyone is keen on nature, no-one wants catastrophic climate change, but why are the solutions so divergent? At root, the two camps (and many in between) have different views on the role of capitalism in climate change. </p>
<p>For those in the Blue Zone, a long-term shift from reliance on fossil fuels is (largely) accepted. But capitalism in its new green guise, many argue, can save the day through technology investment and market mechanisms – and notably through the plethora of offsetting schemes that make up the net-zero plans.</p>
<p>By contrast, critical civil society and youth voices argue that capitalism is the root cause of the problem, together with its handmaiden colonialism. The only solution therefore is to overhaul capitalism and dismantle unequal global power relations. But how, through what alliances? </p>
<p>In a recent paper –- <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03066150.2021.1956473">climate change and agrarian struggles</a> – we explored the challenges of ‘<a href="https://www.ssc.wisc.edu/%7Ewright/How%20to%20be%20an%20anticapitalis/How%20to%20be%20an%20Anticapitalist%20(essay)%20-%20v6.0.pdf">eroding capitalism</a>’ to create structural transformation and climate justice. However, in Glasgow I missed these crucial, political debates about ways forward. Are new styles of multilateral negotiation possible? Can genuine inclusion occur, going beyond the performance of participation where an ‘indigenous’ person or ‘community’ leader is co-opted? Can a true dialogue emerge about our common future?</p>
<p>I of course had very limited exposure to the thousands of simultaneous events. But my sense was that there was little meaningful interchange between different positions. Two worlds talked past each other or – because of restricted access, problems with visas and the high costs of attending –- never even met.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171410/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Scoones receives funding from the European Research Council through an Advanced Grant.</span></em></p>At COP26 in Glasgow everyone was committed to saving the planet, but there were highly divergent views about how to do it.Ian Scoones, Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development StudiesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1711822021-11-08T16:20:48Z2021-11-08T16:20:48ZThe new Global Methane Pledge can buy time while the world drastically reduces fossil fuel use<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430782/original/file-20211108-23-1bqzxl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C25%2C5673%2C3757&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">U.S. President Joe Biden and Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry spoke at the announcement of the Global Methane Pledge.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/ClimateCOP26Kerry/68da437c95e14a119b30e51bf56445f8/photo">AP Photo/Evan Vucci</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There were four big announcements during the first week of COP26, the U.N. climate conference in Glasgow: on <a href="https://theconversation.com/cop26-heres-what-it-would-take-to-end-coal-power-worldwide-171025">coal</a>, <a href="https://www.gfanzero.com/press/amount-of-finance-committed-to-achieving-1-5c-now-at-scale-needed-to-deliver-the-transition/">finance</a>, <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5766">methane</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/deforestation-why-cop26-agreement-will-struggle-to-reverse-global-forest-loss-by-2030-170902">deforestation</a>. Of those four, the global methane pledge could have the most immediate impact on Earth’s climate – provided countries follow through on their pledges and satellite monitoring works as effectively as advertised.</p>
<p>More than 100 countries agreed to <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5766">cut their methane emissions 30% by 2030</a> under the Global Methane Pledge, an initiative launched by the U.S. and European Union. And major <a href="https://hewlett.org/20-philanthropies-join-to-provide-328m-to-dramatically-reduce-methane-emissions/">foundations and philanthropic groups pledged over US$325 million</a> to help countries and industry dramatically reduce methane emissions from multiple sources.</p>
<p>Methane is about <a href="https://unece.org/challenge">84 times more powerful</a> at warming the climate than carbon dioxide over the short term. Since it only stays in the atmosphere for <a href="https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases#methane">about 12 years</a>, compared to hundreds of years for carbon dioxide, reducing the amount of methane human activities are adding to the atmosphere can have a quick impact on global warming. </p>
<p>A 30% cut in methane emissions could reduce projected warming by <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5766">0.2 degrees Celsius</a> (0.36 F), according to European Union estimates. That buys some time while countries are lowering their harder-to-cut carbon dioxide emissions, but it doesn’t mean other efforts can slow down.</p>
<p><iframe id="5UjXU" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/5UjXU/10/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>How big of an impact could the pledge have?</h2>
<p>The increase in methane emissions is driven by three anthropogenic sources: leaks from fossil fuel infrastructure – methane is the primary component of natural gas and can leak from natural gas pipelines, drilling operations and coal mines – and also from agriculture, primarily livestock and rice fields, and from decaying waste in landfills. The <a href="https://rhg.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/RHG_UntappedPotential_April2015.pdf">technology exists</a> to locate and stop the leaks from pipelines and oil and gas operations, and many landfills already make money by <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/driving-down-methane-leaks-from-the-oil-and-gas-industry">capturing methane</a> for use as fuel.</p>
<p>Several recent analyses show the immense potential of the methane pledge to slow warming. In May 2021 the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and U.N. Environment Programme released the <a href="https://www.ccacoalition.org/en/content/benefits-and-costs-mitigating-methane-emissions">Global Methane Assessment</a>, a landmark report that describes how reducing methane can change the climate trajectory within the next 20 years – a critical time frame for slowing warming enough to avoid passing dangerous tipping points. The <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar6/">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report</a> concluded in August 2021 that methane mitigation has the greatest potential to slow warming over the next 20 years.</p>
<p>Human-caused methane emissions are growing at an alarming rate. <a href="https://research.noaa.gov/article/ArtMID/587/ArticleID/2742/Despite-pandemic-shutdowns-carbon-dioxide-and-methane-surged-in-2020">Data released</a> by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2021 shows global methane emissions surged in 2020. Over the last decade methane emissions have reached five-year growth rates not seen since the 1980s. </p>
<p><iframe id="JRw1j" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/JRw1j/5/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>An ambitious start</h2>
<p>So, can the new global methane pledge work in time to help governments and industry limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C in the next two decades? </p>
<p>In short: yes, it can. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.ccacoalition.org/en/content/benefits-and-costs-mitigating-methane-emissions">Global Methane Assessment</a> determined that global human-driven methane emissions should be reduced by between 130 and 230 megatons per year by 2030 to be consistent with the Paris climate agreement goal of keeping global warming under 1.5 C compared to pre-industrial times. The Global Methane Pledge announced at COP26 would achieve approximately 145 megatons in annual reductions in 2030, an estimate extrapolated from the International Energy Agency’s <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/methane-tracker-2020">methane tracking reports</a>. </p>
<p>The Biden administration has proposed <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/US-Methane-Emissions-Reduction-Action-Plan-1.pdf">sweeping new rules</a> on methane emissions, particularly targeting oil and gas operations, to help reach its target. Missing from the pledge’s signers, however, are some large methane emitters, including China and Russia.</p>
<p><a href="https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/about/people-partners/jeff-nesbit/">I worked</a> in both the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations and have been involved in climate change issues for several years. I see the pledge as a strong first step as the first-ever global commitment to specifically reduce global methane emissions.</p>
<p>The 30% goal serves as an ambitious floor to start from while countries get better at reducing methane and technologies improve.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/reducing-methane-is-crucial-for-protecting-climate-and-health-and-it-can-pay-for-itself-so-why-arent-more-companies-doing-it-160423">Reducing methane is crucial for protecting climate and health, and it can pay for itself – so why aren't more companies doing it?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="COP26: the world’s biggest climate talks" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424739/original/file-20211005-17-cgrf2z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>This story is part of The Conversation’s coverage of COP26, the Glasgow climate conference, by experts from around the world.</strong>
<br><em>Amid a rising tide of climate news and stories, The Conversation is here to clear the air and make sure you get information you can trust. <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/cop26">Read more of our U.S.</a> and <a href="https://page.theconversation.com/cop26-glasgow-2021-climate-change-summit/">global coverage</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171182/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeff Nesbit does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Of the big pledges so far at the UN climate conference, cutting methane could have the most immediate impact.Jeff Nesbit, Research Affiliate, Yale Program on Climate Change Communications, Yale UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1710242021-11-02T14:57:33Z2021-11-02T14:57:33ZCows and cars should not be conflated in climate change debates<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429754/original/file-20211102-51261-1pd114c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Cattle driven into the Kenyan capital Nairobi for new pasture amid a severe drought navigate through city traffic.
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Maina/AFP via Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>With world leaders gathered for the COP26 summit in Glasgow, there is much talk of <a href="https://pastres.org/2021/10/29/climate-change-we-need-to-talk-about-methane/">methane</a> emissions and belching cows. The <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_21_4785">Global Methane Pledge</a>, led by the US and EU and now with many country signatories, aims to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030. This is seen as a “quick win” to reduce global warming and will have major implications for livestock production.</p>
<p>Livestock have become the villain of climate change. Some researchers claim that <a href="https://www.fao.org/publications/card/en/c/030a41a8-3e10-57d1-ae0c-86680a69ceea/">14.5% of all human-derived emissions come from livestock</a>, either directly or indirectly. There have been widespread calls for radical shifts in livestock production and diet globally to address climate chaos. But which livestock, where? As <a href="https://pastres.org/livestock-report/">a new report</a> I co-authored argues, it is vitally important to differentiate between production systems.</p>
<p>Not all milk and meat is the same. Extensive, often mobile, pastoral systems – of the sort commonly seen across the African continent, as well as in Asia, Latin America and Europe – have hugely different effects to contained, intensive industrial livestock production.</p>
<p>Yet, in standard narratives about diet and production shifts, all livestock are lumped in together. Cows are misleadingly equated with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/22/eu-farm-animals-produce-more-emissions-than-cars-and-vans-combined-greenpeace">polluting cars</a> and <a href="https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/10/02/treating-beef-like-coal-would-make-a-big-dent-in-greenhouse-gas-emissions">beef with coal</a>. The simplistic “all livestock are bad” narrative is promoted by campaign organisations, environmental celebrities, rich philanthropists and policymakers alike. Inevitably, it dominates <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/sep/13/meat-greenhouses-gases-food-production-study">media coverage</a>. However, a much more sophisticated debate is needed.</p>
<h2>Delving into data</h2>
<p><a href="https://pastres.org/livestock-report/">Our report</a> delves into the data and highlights the problems with using aggregate statistics in assessing the impacts of livestock on the global climate. </p>
<p>Some types of livestock production, especially those using industrial systems, are certainly highly damaging to the environment. They generate significant greenhouse gas emissions and cause serious water pollution. They also add to deforestation through demand for feed and expanding grazing areas, for example. And, reducing the amount of <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/meat-supply-per-person">animal-source foods in diets</a>, whether in the global north or south, makes much sense, both for the environment and for people’s health.</p>
<p>But industrial systems are only one type of livestock production. And aggregate emission figures do not pick up the nuances of this reality. Looking across life-cycle assessments – a technique widely used to assess the impacts on climate change from different agri-food systems – we found some important <a href="https://pastres.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/infosheet-2-flaws-in-assessments.pdf">gaps and assumptions</a>. </p>
<p>One is that global assessments are overwhelmingly based on data from industrial systems. A <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aaq0216">frequently quoted paper</a> looking at 38,700 farms and 1,600 processors only focused on “commercially viable” units, mostly from Europe and North America. However, not all livestock are the same, meaning that global extrapolations don’t work. </p>
<p>Research in Kenya, for example, shows how <a href="https://www.ilri.org/outcomes/science-helps-tailor-livestock-related-climate-change-mitigation-strategies-africa">assumptions about emissions</a> from African animals are inaccurate. Such livestock are smaller, have higher quality diets due to selective grazing and have physiologies adapted to their settings. They are not the same as a highly bred animal in a respiration chamber, which is where much of the data on emission factors comes from. Overall, data from extensive systems are massively under-represented. For instance, <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aa6cd5/meta">a review of food production life cycle assessments</a> showed that only 0.4% of such studies were from Africa, where extensive pastoralism is common across large areas.</p>
<p>Another issue is that most such assessments focus on emissions impacts per animal or per unit of product. This creates a distorted picture; the wider costs and benefits are not taken into account. Those in favour of industrialised systems point to the high per animal methane emission from animals eating rough, low-quality forage on open rangelands compared to the potential for improved, methane-reducing feeds in contained systems. This misses the point: a wider, more <a href="https://www.cirad.fr/en/cirad-news/news/2019/ca-vient-de-sortir/perspective-52-pastoral-landscapes-climate-change-sahel">integrated systems approach</a> must encompass all impacts, but also benefits. For instance, some forms of extensive grazing can potentially increase soil carbon stocks, adding to the already significant store of carbon in open rangelands. </p>
<p>Then there’s the fact that methane and carbon dioxide have different lifetimes in the atmosphere and are not equivalent. Methane is a short-lived but highly potent gas. Carbon dioxide sticks around in the atmosphere effectively forever. Reducing warming can be addressed in the short term by tackling methane emissions, but long term climate change needs to focus on carbon dioxide. It therefore makes a big difference how different greenhouse gases are assessed and how any “<a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-a-new-way-to-assess-global-warming-potential-of-short-lived-pollutants">global warming potential</a>” is estimated. Simply put, <a href="https://news.trust.org/item/20180918083629-d2wf0">cows and cars are not the same</a>.</p>
<p>It also matters what baseline is used. <a href="https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/326549/Intensifying_pastoralism_AAM.pdf;jsessionid=C32DF3C85BE7E4FFAD3D2EC11D7EEDFE?sequence=1">Pastoral systems may not result in additional emissions from a “natural” baseline</a>. For example, in extensive systems in Africa domestic livestock replace wildlife that emit comparable amounts of greenhouse gases. By contrast, industrial systems clearly generate additional impacts, adding significant environmental costs through methane emissions from production, the importation of feed, the concentration of livestock waste and fossil fuel use in transport and sunk infrastructure.</p>
<h2>Climate justice</h2>
<p>A more rounded assessment is necessary. Extensive livestock contribute to emissions, but it’s simultaneously true that they produce multiple environmental benefits – including potentially through carbon sequestration, improving biodiversity and enhancing landscapes.</p>
<p>Animal-source foods are also <a href="https://www.gainhealth.org/sites/default/files/publications/documents/gain-briefing-paper-series-4-nutrient-shortfalls-in-young-childrens-diets-and-the-role-of-affordability.pdf">vital for nutrition</a>, providing high density protein and other nutrients, especially for low-income and vulnerable populations and in places where crops cannot be produced. </p>
<p>Across the world livestock – cattle, sheep, goats, camels, yaks, llamas and more – provide income and livelihoods for many. The world’s rangelands make up over <a href="https://cgspace.cgiar.org/handle/10568/114064">half the world’s land surface</a> and are home to many millions of people.</p>
<p>As countries commit to reducing methane emissions, a more sophisticated debate is urgently needed, lest <a href="https://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/handle/20.500.12413/16913">major injustices</a> result. The danger is that, as regulations are developed, verification procedures approved and reporting systems initiated, livestock systems in Africa and elsewhere will be penalised, with major consequences for poor people’s livelihoods.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171024/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Scoones receives funding from the European Research Council through an Advanced Grant for the PASTRES project (<a href="http://www.pastres.org">www.pastres.org</a>).</span></em></p>A simplistic ‘all livestock are bad’ narrative is promoted by campaigners, celebrities, philanthropists and policymakers alike. A much more sophisticated debate is needed.Ian Scoones, Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development StudiesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.