COP27 | United Nations to launch public database of global methane leaks detected by space satellites
The Hindu
The system — Methane Alert and Response System — will build on a pledge signed by 119 countries since last year to cut methane emissions by 30% this decade.
The United Nation’s (U.N.) environment watchdog said, on November 11, it will launch a public database of global methane leaks detected by space satellites, as part of a new programme to encourage companies and governments to curb emissions of the powerful greenhouse gas.
The system, dubbed MARS or Methane Alert and Response System, will build on a pledge signed by 119 countries since last year to cut methane emissions by 30% this decade, a goal scientists say is crucial to averting extreme climate change.
Editorial | A necessary signal: On COP27 U.N. Climate meeting
"The Methane Alert and Response System is a big step in helping governments and companies deliver on this important, short-term climate goal," Inger Andersen, executive director of the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP), said in a statement issued at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt.
"Reducing methane emissions can make a big and rapid difference, as this gas leaves the atmosphere far quicker than carbon dioxide."
“Methane, which has a much higher warming effect than carbon dioxide during its short lifespan, is responsible for about a quarter of the global rise in temperatures so far,” scientists say.
“The MARS system will rely on an existing network of space satellites to spot methane plumes around the globe, estimate how big they are, and identify the company or government responsible,” UNEP said.