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Biden pledges to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030

By Yashasvini on Nov 02, 2021 | 05:32 AM IST

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  • • President Biden and EU Commission chief Leyen led a global partnership to cut emissions of methane by 30% compared to 2020 levels
  • • The pledge has been signed by more than 80 countries including Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Mexico

U.S. President Joe Biden and EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen endorsed a global partnership to cut emissions of methane, by 30% compared to 2020 levels, by the end of this decade, at the COP26 summit on Tuesday. 

The initiative, which was first proposed by the US and EU, in September, has been signed by more than 80 countries. The pledge now includes six of the world's 10 biggest methane emitters: the U.S., Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Mexico.

President Biden addressed the representatives and highlighted the need to reduce methane emissions as quickly as possible.

Read more: COP26: World leaders under pressure to turn climate pledges into action

He announced the pact to cut methane emissions by 30% by the end of the decade in front of the COP26 attendees at the launch of the Global Methane Pledge. “It’s one of the most potent greenhouse gases there is. It amounts to about half the warming we’re experiencing today,” he said.

Biden added that the signatories could “go beyond” the pledge’s 30% reduction target. The pledge covers countries that emit nearly half of all methane, and makeup 70% of global GDP, the US president said.

Despite the President’s energy and vigor surrounding the new initiative, major emitters of methane such as Russia, China, and India are not part of the pledge. 

Also Read: COP26: India to achieve net-zero emission by 2070, PM Modi pledges

The fact that all the commitments are voluntary also clouds the fulfillment of this goal.

Decoding methane and its effect on global warming

For long, the efforts to control global warming involve the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is emitted as a result of human activities such as generating power and deforestation.

Also Read: COP26: World leaders including US, China & Brazil pledge to end deforestation by 2030

Over time, the focus over probable causes for global warming has moved to methane. Although the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere is dangerously high, individual methane molecules have a more powerful warming effect on the atmosphere than single CO2 molecules.

Last August, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that methane was responsible for a significant proportion of a degree Celsius of warming the world has already experienced.

Inputs from BBC

Picture Credits: BBC (IPCC Sixth Assessment Report 2021)

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