Global Methane Pledge:
The US President has announced the Global Methane Pledge, which is an US-EU led effort to cut methane emissions by a third by the end of this decade.
- The announcement has come ahead of 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Glasgow, UK.
- This will also help in abiding by the targets of the Paris climate deal.
- The pact between the US and the EU sets a target of cutting at least 30% from global methane emissions, based on 2020 levels, by 2030.
- If adopted around the world, this would reduce global heating by 0.2C by the 2040s, compared with likely temperature rises by then.
- The world is now about 1.2C hotter now than in pre-industrial times.
Methane Gas:
- Methane is the simplest hydrocarbon, consisting of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms (CH4).
- It is flammable, and is used as a fuel worldwide.
- Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas.
- Approximately 40% of methane emitted is from natural sources and about 60% comes from human-influenced sources, including livestock farming, rice agriculture, biomass burning and so forth.
- More Global Warming Potential: It is nearly 80-85 times more potent than carbon dioxide in terms of its global warming capacity.
- This makes it a critical target for reducing global warming more quickly while simultaneously working to reduce other greenhouse gases.
- Promotes Generation of Tropospheric Ozone: Increasing emissions are driving a rise in tropospheric ozone air pollution, which causes more than one million premature deaths annually.
