Officials in the US and European Union pledge to cut global methane emissions by nearly a third by 2030 and are pushing several of the world’s largest economies to join them, according to people familiar with the effort. </ The agreement would be the first global commitment to reduce emissions of methane, a gas that is less common in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide but far more effective at trapping heat. The Global Methane Pledge, known as the Global Methane Pledge, does not call for country-specific targets, but rather the signatories should support efforts to reduce global man-made methane emissions by at least 30% from 2020 levels by 2030, people said.
US and EU officials have agreed to the deal and plan to announce their commitments on Friday at a virtual climate summit that President Biden will host in front of the United Nations General Assembly next week, according to another person familiar with the effort.
The Officials are working to get China, Russia and other major oil and gas producers to join the pledge as the cornerstone of the international climate talks to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, in November, these people said. News of the deal was previously reported by Reuters.
Representatives from the White House and the US Environmental Protection Agency put questions to the US climate commissioner
John Kerrys
Office. A spokeswoman for Mr. Kerry declined to comment. Mr Kerry and his team were in India to lobby other nations ahead of the November talks.
The push for a methane deal comes as part of negotiations to implement the terms of the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement, a voluntary pact without Enforcement mechanism.
The properties of methane as a heat-storing greenhouse gas are estimated by scientists at least 25 times as strong as those of carbon dioxide. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a UN body, said in August that reducing methane emissions was one of the most effective and immediate ways to slow climate change.
Actions to reduce methane emissions could come from oil and gas companies, a leading source , hit hardest. Methane can escape into the atmosphere through leaks at drilling and storage sites or on its way through millions of miles of pipelines to customers such as power plants and homeowners who use natural gas for heating. Agriculture and waste management are also major sources of methane emissions.
The agreement comes together as EPA officials work to finalize new rules under the Clean Air Act that aim to stop methane leaks from U.S. oil and natural gas production facilities to reduce. As early as this fall, new regulations are expected that may include more inspections or surveillance technology to prevent and stop leaks.
As a presidential candidate, Mr Biden pledged to set stricter rules for this source of greenhouse gas emissions, alongside similar efforts for other leaders Sources of carbon dioxide emissions, power plants as well as cars and trucks.
Appeared in the print edition of September 15, 2021 as « U.S., Europe Push Global Methane Deal ».
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