METHANE EMISSIONS

TAG: GS-3: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT & GS-2: IR

CONTEXT:  More than 1,200 notifications about significant methane plumes have been detected worldwide over the past two years by the Methane Alert and Response System (MARS), which UNEP launched at COP27 in Egypt to provide satellite-driven notifications on substantial methane emissions.

EXPLANATION:

About Methane:

• Methane (CH₄) is a primary hydrocarbon component of natural gas. It is a colourless, odourless, and highly flammable gas.
• Methane is about 80 times more powerful at warming the atmosphere than carbon dioxide over 20 years.
• Methane also contributes to the formation of ground-level ozone, a hazardous air pollutant and greenhouse gas.
• Methane has accounted for roughly 30% of global warming since pre-industrial times and has increased faster than ever since record-keeping began in the 1980s.
• Methane is a greenhouse gas (GHG), so its presence in the atmosphere affects the Earth’s temperature and climate system. It is the second most abundant anthropogenic greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide (CO2), accounting for about 20% of global emissions.
• Methane is a potent greenhouse gas shorter-lived than carbon dioxide, so achieving significant reductions would have a rapid and significant impact on atmospheric warming potential.
• The United States of America (USA), China, Russia, India, Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria and Mexico are estimated to be responsible for about half of all anthropogenic methane emissions.

What are the sources of methane:

• 50 to 65% of methane emissions globally come from human-caused activities such as animal husbandry, leaks from natural gas systems, landfill waste from homes and businesses, paddy cultivation, etc.

Worldwide and Indian initiatives to tackle methane emissions:

• India Greenhouse Gas Program: This Program is an industry-led voluntary framework aiming to help Indian companies monitor progress towards measurement and management of GHG emissions using tools and methodologies from WRI’s (World Resources Institute) GHG Protocol.
• Harit Dhara: The Harit Dhara is an anti-methanogenic feed supplement prepared from the Natural Phyto-sources.

• It is found very effective in reducing the enteric methane emission upto 17% to 20% when incorporated in the livestock feed.

• Methane Alert and Response System: UNEP’s International Methane Emissions Observatory launched the Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) at COP27.
• Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC): A voluntary global partnership to reduce short-lived climate pollutants, including methane. India has been a partner since 2019.
• EU methane strategy: Aims to reduce methane emissions, improve air quality, and strengthen the EU’s global leadership in the fight against climate change.
• Global Methane Pledge: Launched at UNFCCC COP26 in 2021, this pledge aims to reduce global methane emissions by 30% by 2030. The US and EU lead the pledge, and 111 countries participate. India has not signed the pledge.

What is Methane Alert and Response System (MARS)?

• It was announced at the Conference of the Parties (COP 27) in November 2022. It is a data-to-action initiative that aims to put open, reliable, and actionable data in the hands of individuals who can reduce methane emissions.
• UNEP allowed the International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) to engage with partners, countries, and operators to refine MARS processes and procedures before the data is made public.
• The initiative works with the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA).
• It uses satellites to scan the globe for significant emissions sources and alerts countries and companies so they can take methane action and accelerate progress, supporting the Paris Agreement and the Global Methane Pledge.
• It brings together four critical components to promote transparency and reduce emissions:

• • Response from notified stakeholders to address the emissions
  • Notification of relevant countries and companies about these detected emissions.
  • Detection of large sources of human-caused methane emissions.
  • Tracking progress of actions taken to reduce emissions and collaboration to prevent future methane.

Source:

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/climate-change/only-1-per-cent-methane-emissions-alerts-to-governments-and-companies-have-received-responses-unep