Under the title "Colorless, Odorless Gas Responsible for a Quarter of Global Warming," the Al Arabiya website reported that while everyone talks about carbon emissions and the necessity of reducing them to zero, many people ignore methane gas. This gas is colorless and odorless, allowing it to enter the atmosphere without raising the awareness of most people and without sufficient efforts to monitor and measure it. However, there is growing global interest in methane these days, not only because it is a problem but also because it offers an opportunity for rapid results in combating climate change.
The reason is that methane breaks down and dissipates in the atmosphere within a period that may not exceed 12 years, which is a short time compared to carbon dioxide that remains in the atmosphere for hundreds of years. Thus, reducing methane emissions can yield tangible results within a single generation and effectively curb the accelerated warming of the Earth. According to some forecasts, it is possible to avoid one-third of the expected rise in global temperatures by reducing human-caused methane emissions through relatively simple measures without the need for new technologies or reducing consumption.
Estimates from the International Energy Agency indicate that oil and gas activities alone emitted 70 million metric tons of methane last year, a figure equivalent to the total carbon dioxide emissions from the energy sector in the European Union. The agency indicates that the world needs to reduce methane emissions to 44 million metric tons by 2025, and then to 21 million tons by 2030, to achieve a sustainable development scenario. This means there is a need to cut methane emissions by 70% within just ten years.
Although methane emissions are smaller in scale compared to carbon dioxide emissions, the problem is that methane has a much greater capacity to trap heat in the atmosphere, to the extent that estimates suggest it is responsible for a quarter of the planet's temperature increase caused by human activities. The challenge lies in monitoring invisible methane plumes, and there are indeed complaints about some countries deliberately concealing their methane emissions.
However, due to the growing global interest in environmental issues, major global oil companies have been compelled to launch drones, planes, and satellites to monitor and stop any methane leaks. Recently, new technologies have emerged that allow monitoring of such leaks in various locations, from aging Russian gas pipelines to old oil wells in Virginia.
The positive news is that oil and gas companies have an economic incentive to reduce methane emissions, as there is a commercial benefit to capturing as much of it as possible rather than allowing it to escape into the atmosphere, given its high market value. For example, Saudi Arabia has achieved significant milestones in this regard, as Aramco began capturing and processing associated gas in 1977 for use in power generation and other sectors. As a result, the flaring rates of associated gas at Aramco have reached nearly zero.
