GS Paper 3
Syllabus: Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation
Source: DTE
Context: According to a new study, only 13% of methane emissions are covered by global methane mitigation policies.
| Methane (CH4) | ||
| ● A greenhouse gas (GHG) responsible for 30% of the warming since preindustrial times, second only to carbon dioxide (CO2).
● However, it is 80 times more potent at warming than CO2. ● Agriculture, fossil fuels as well as solid waste and wastewater are the three major sources of methane. ● In India (3rd largest emitter of CH4) ~20% of its anthropogenic CH4 emissions come from agriculture (manure management), coal mines, municipal solid waste, etc. ● According to the IPCC, the world must cut methane emissions by at least 30 % by 2030. |
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| Efforts to curb methane emissions | ||
| Global | India | |
| Global Methane Pledge – Both the US and the EU have planned to cut methane emissions by 30% (by 2030) compared with the 2020 levels. | According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, a nationwide strategy to boost biogas production has received significant funding. | |
| UNEP’s International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) strategy – To get policy-relevant data into the right hands for emissions mitigation. | ICAR’s National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) project: Technologies (like System for Rice Intensification, Direct Seeded Rice) were developed to reduce methane emissions. | |
| Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) – Launched at the COP27 to the UNFCCC in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt | Crop Diversification Programme: Methane emissions are avoided due to the diversion of paddy to alternate crops like pulses, oilseeds, maize, cotton, and agro-forestry. | |
Highlights of the study:
- Since the 1980s, the rate of increase in methane emissions is higher than ever before.
- Methane policies are actions by governments that explicitly aim to monitor, prevent, or reduce methane emissions from anthropogenic sources.
- 90% of identified national policies were from three regions: North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.
- The policies targeting fossil methane (coal, oil, and gas) are lower than biogenic methane (released by living organisms).
Concerns:
- This trend has emerged despite readily available solutions to cut methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector.
- Impact of methane mitigation policies on industries (like agriculture) important to the national economy, energy and food security or rural poverty considerations.
India-specific findings:
- No effective policies targeting methane emissions from rice cultivation and biomass burning (burning of crop residues).
- While policies targeting biomass burning have quite broad coverage, their implementation remains challenging.
- For example, the 1997 Coalbed methane policy was ineffective in incentivising coalbed methane production.
Way ahead:
- The policies should focus on super emitters, which are facilities, equipment, and other infrastructure, typically in the fossil-fuel, waste, or agriculture sectors, that emit methane at high rates.
- While reducing livestock or rice-production-related emissions is challenging, India can contribute by reducing emissions associated with coal production.
Insta Links:
Fossil fuels firms failed to curb methane emission: What IEA’s annual report says
