RIYADH: The International Energy Agency has said that global methane emissions of the energy industry have been understated by 70 percent in some countries.
This rate was identified as “alarming” by the executive director of the agency, who highlighted the dire need for policies to cut emissions to curb global warming.
IEA noted that most greenhouse gas inventories submitted by governments “have not been updated for years and, even for those that have, many of these inventories are not yet accurate enough to provide a clear picture of emissions.”
Methane causes a high level of pollution as it traps heat in the atmosphere over a shorter lifespan, but more intensely than carbon dioxide.
The energy sector contributes to around 40 percent of methane emissions from human activity, according to IEA’s global methane tracker.
“At today’s elevated natural gas prices, nearly all of the methane emissions from oil and gas operations worldwide could be avoided at no net cost,” [including by burning it to produce electricity], said executive director, Fatih Birol.
