With global methane emissions rising sharply, by 32% so
far this year despite the pandemic-driven recession, the European Union
may consider mandatory emission standards for oil and gas imports that
would push fossils to report and repair leaks of the climate-busting
greenhouse gas.
far this year despite the pandemic-driven recession, the European Union
may consider mandatory emission standards for oil and gas imports that
would push fossils to report and repair leaks of the climate-busting
greenhouse gas.
“Comparing the first eight months of 2019 to the same
period in 2020, the Paris-based firm Kayrros said methane leaks from oil
and gas industry hot spots climbed even higher in Algeria, Russia, and
Turkmenistan, growing by more than 40%,” the Washington Post reports,
with the United States, Iran, and Iraq also showing up among the biggest
contributors by volume. That’s a problem because methane is 84 times
more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide over the 20-year span
when humanity will be scrambling to get the climate crisis under
control.