Methane emissions and the gas industry:
the state of play
T
he conversation about climate change has chiefly focused on reducing carbon dioxide emissions as a means of capping
global temperature growth at under 2ºC above pre-industrial levels, the central goal of the Paris
Gas companies are already undertaking significant efforts through individual and group initiatives, motivated by pressure not only by governments but also investors and customers
Agreement. But increasingly, methane is gaining attention as a key contributor to global warming. Methane’s importance was highlighted in UNEP’s recent Global Methane Assessment, which called for urgent action across multiple sectors to reduce methane emissions, arguing that this effort could have a much more rapid impact in preventing temperature growth than the ongoing focus on CO2 emissions. While identifying the agricultural sector as the biggest
JOSEPH MURPHY
contributor to methane emissions, the report stressed the critical role that the oil, gas and coal sector also had to play.
Group initiatives Gas companies are already undertaking work through individual and group initiatives, motivated by pressure
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G L O B A L VO I C E O F G A S
JUNE 2021
