Fully implementing methane plans could reverse emissions growth but miss 2030 target
A new study, led by #IIASA researchers and coauthored by #UNEP colleagues, finds that if governments fully implement their #methane reduction plans, they could reduce global #emissions by 11% between 2020 and 2030. This would reverse the current trend of increasing methane emissions, but would not be sufficient to achieve the goal of the Global Methane Pledge.
A detailed assessment shows that a 22% reduction could be possible at a relatively low cost, while a 30% reduction would nearly exhaust the mitigation potential achievable with existing technology.
The researchers explain that the source sector with the greatest potential for low-cost methane emission reductions is the #FossilFuel sector. About 70% of the technical mitigation potential available for 2030 comes from reducing venting and flaring of associated gas during oil and gas production, controlling leakage in the oil and gas production and transportation chains, and limiting methane emissions from coal mining.
https://phys.org/news/2026-10-fully-methane-reverse-emissions-growth.html
Paper: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2026GB009471
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