More than 100 countries representing 70% of the global economy joined the U.S. and the European Union in a COP26 pledge to slash global methane emissions by at least 30% below 2020 levels by the end of the decade. This agreement was made with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees C. Methane emissions account for about half of the 1 C net rise in global average temperature since the pre-industrial era, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Countries joining the pledge included 15 of the world’s top 30 methane emitters, but China, Russia, India, and Australia were absent. The Global Methane Pledge was launched at the World Leaders Summit at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland.
Following the methane pledge at COP26, the US EPA announced significant new regulations to target methane emissions from venting and flaring of natural gas by oil and gas producers. Fossil fuel operations globally emitted close to 120 million mt of methane in 2020, nearly a third of all methane emissions from human activity. Prior to the Glasgow climate talks, Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund, had this to say about the importance of a methane agreement. "Momentum is building for a methane moment at Glasgow. Cutting methane pollution is the fastest opportunity we have to help avert our most acute climate risks, including crop loss, wildfires, extreme weather and rising sea levels." In addition to the countries behind the pledge, 20 philanthropic organizations said they plan to fund more than $223 million to slash methane emissions around the world in support of the Global Methane Pledge. The amount makes it the largest private pledge to reduce methane emissions globally, according to a news release from the Hewlett Foundation, a charitable foundation for environment, arts, gender equity and other issues.
Increased scrutiny of the upstream carbon intensity associated with the production of fossil fuels has prompted investors, consumers, and producers to seek new ways to reduce their carbon footprint, driving growing demand for "low-carbon” fuels. Methane intensity is the measure of methane emissions as a percentage of natural gas produced.
