SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Apr 07, 2023
Driven primarily by human activities including fossil fuel extraction, methane levels in the atmosphere had their fourth-largest annual increase in 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday.
Scientists detected 1,911.9 parts per billion (ppb) of methane in the atmosphere last year, indicating a rise of 14 ppb. The level rose by 17.75 ppb in 2021 and 15.20 ppb the previous year.
Benjamin Poulter, a scientist with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), told the Associated Press that researchers are "confident that over half of the methane emissions are coming from human activities like oil and gas extraction, agriculture, waste management, and landfills."
Responding to pressure from experts and climate campaigners, policymakers and corporations in recent years have made pledges to reduce carbon emissions, but scientists have begun to push for more policies focused on slashing the release of methane into the environment, due to the gas' ability to trap heat over a short period of time.
Methane can trap about 87 times more heat than carbon dioxide in its first two decades in the atmosphere.
Responding to NOAA's report on atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, Sierra Club campaigner Jens Wieting said that "allowing any new fossil fuel projects, more fracking, and [liquefied natural gas] is an unspeakable climate crime."
The report comes a month after The Guardian revealed that more than 1,000 "super-emitter" incidents, in which projects leak at least one tonne of methane per hour, were detected worldwide last year, mainly at oil and gas facilities.
About 26% of the planetary heating that is attributed to human activity is caused by methane emissions from sources such as landfills, livestock, and oil and gas extraction, Duke University professor Drew Shindell told the AP Thursday.
Experts also warn that fossil fuel emissions have led to a feedback loop in which the planet itself is releasing more methane due to hotter conditions.
"If this rapid rise is wetlands and natural systems responding to climate change, then that's very frightening because we can't do much to stop it," Shindell told the AP. "If methane leaks from the fossil fuels sector, then we can make regulations. But we can't make regulations on what swamps do."
Policymakers must take action to cut the methane emissions that can be reduced, said NOAA.
"The time is now," said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad in a statement, "to address greenhouse gas pollution and to lower human-caused emissions as we continue to build toward a climate-ready nation."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Driven primarily by human activities including fossil fuel extraction, methane levels in the atmosphere had their fourth-largest annual increase in 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday.
Scientists detected 1,911.9 parts per billion (ppb) of methane in the atmosphere last year, indicating a rise of 14 ppb. The level rose by 17.75 ppb in 2021 and 15.20 ppb the previous year.
Benjamin Poulter, a scientist with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), told the Associated Press that researchers are "confident that over half of the methane emissions are coming from human activities like oil and gas extraction, agriculture, waste management, and landfills."
Responding to pressure from experts and climate campaigners, policymakers and corporations in recent years have made pledges to reduce carbon emissions, but scientists have begun to push for more policies focused on slashing the release of methane into the environment, due to the gas' ability to trap heat over a short period of time.
Methane can trap about 87 times more heat than carbon dioxide in its first two decades in the atmosphere.
Responding to NOAA's report on atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, Sierra Club campaigner Jens Wieting said that "allowing any new fossil fuel projects, more fracking, and [liquefied natural gas] is an unspeakable climate crime."
The report comes a month after The Guardian revealed that more than 1,000 "super-emitter" incidents, in which projects leak at least one tonne of methane per hour, were detected worldwide last year, mainly at oil and gas facilities.
About 26% of the planetary heating that is attributed to human activity is caused by methane emissions from sources such as landfills, livestock, and oil and gas extraction, Duke University professor Drew Shindell told the AP Thursday.
Experts also warn that fossil fuel emissions have led to a feedback loop in which the planet itself is releasing more methane due to hotter conditions.
"If this rapid rise is wetlands and natural systems responding to climate change, then that's very frightening because we can't do much to stop it," Shindell told the AP. "If methane leaks from the fossil fuels sector, then we can make regulations. But we can't make regulations on what swamps do."
Policymakers must take action to cut the methane emissions that can be reduced, said NOAA.
"The time is now," said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad in a statement, "to address greenhouse gas pollution and to lower human-caused emissions as we continue to build toward a climate-ready nation."
From Your Site Articles
- 'Worst Possible News': Scientists Urge Immediate Action as Greenhouse Gas Levels Hit All-Time High ›
- Drilling Operations, Wildfires Emitting Far More Methane Than Previously Known: Studies ›
- 'Trashing the Climate': EPA Failing to Address Massive Methane Emissions From Landfills ›
- Petition Demands EPA Take Action on 'Under-the-Radar' Methane Emissions From Landfills ›
- Study Shows Methane Leaks Put Climate Risk From Gas 'On Par With Coal' ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Driven primarily by human activities including fossil fuel extraction, methane levels in the atmosphere had their fourth-largest annual increase in 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday.
Scientists detected 1,911.9 parts per billion (ppb) of methane in the atmosphere last year, indicating a rise of 14 ppb. The level rose by 17.75 ppb in 2021 and 15.20 ppb the previous year.
Benjamin Poulter, a scientist with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), told the Associated Press that researchers are "confident that over half of the methane emissions are coming from human activities like oil and gas extraction, agriculture, waste management, and landfills."
Responding to pressure from experts and climate campaigners, policymakers and corporations in recent years have made pledges to reduce carbon emissions, but scientists have begun to push for more policies focused on slashing the release of methane into the environment, due to the gas' ability to trap heat over a short period of time.
Methane can trap about 87 times more heat than carbon dioxide in its first two decades in the atmosphere.
Responding to NOAA's report on atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, Sierra Club campaigner Jens Wieting said that "allowing any new fossil fuel projects, more fracking, and [liquefied natural gas] is an unspeakable climate crime."
The report comes a month after The Guardian revealed that more than 1,000 "super-emitter" incidents, in which projects leak at least one tonne of methane per hour, were detected worldwide last year, mainly at oil and gas facilities.
About 26% of the planetary heating that is attributed to human activity is caused by methane emissions from sources such as landfills, livestock, and oil and gas extraction, Duke University professor Drew Shindell told the AP Thursday.
Experts also warn that fossil fuel emissions have led to a feedback loop in which the planet itself is releasing more methane due to hotter conditions.
"If this rapid rise is wetlands and natural systems responding to climate change, then that's very frightening because we can't do much to stop it," Shindell told the AP. "If methane leaks from the fossil fuels sector, then we can make regulations. But we can't make regulations on what swamps do."
Policymakers must take action to cut the methane emissions that can be reduced, said NOAA.
"The time is now," said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad in a statement, "to address greenhouse gas pollution and to lower human-caused emissions as we continue to build toward a climate-ready nation."
From Your Site Articles
- 'Worst Possible News': Scientists Urge Immediate Action as Greenhouse Gas Levels Hit All-Time High ›
- Drilling Operations, Wildfires Emitting Far More Methane Than Previously Known: Studies ›
- 'Trashing the Climate': EPA Failing to Address Massive Methane Emissions From Landfills ›
- Petition Demands EPA Take Action on 'Under-the-Radar' Methane Emissions From Landfills ›
- Study Shows Methane Leaks Put Climate Risk From Gas 'On Par With Coal' ›
Related Articles Around the Web
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.