Regulations would also cut 1.5bn metric tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2038, head of EPA says at Cop28
The United States has announced a major crackdown on methane emissions as part of a new effort by several countries at the Cop28 summit to curb the “super pollutant” that is responsible for turbocharging the climate crisis.
The US has used the climate conference, which is administered by the UN and being held in Dubai, to unveil new regulations it estimates will cut methane emissions from its vast oil and gas industry by 80% from levels that would be expected without the rule, a total of 58 million tonnes by 2038.
The rule is the centrepiece of a series of actions by countries at Cop28 to limit methane, which is much shorter-lived in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide but up to 80 times more powerful in heating the Earth. Methane is responsible for about a third of the warming already experienced by the planet and the US is one of the world’s largest emitters.
“Sharp cuts in methane emissions are among the most critical actions the United States can take in the short-term to slow the rate of climate change,” said Michael Regan, administrator of the US Environmental Protection Agency, which has created the rule.
Regan said the new regulations would cut the equivalent of 1.5 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide, which is nearly the amount of pollution emitted by the US’s entire power sector, or 28 million fossil fuel-powered cars, over the next 15 years. The rule will require oil and gas companies to plug leaks from existing facilities, eliminate routine flaring of gas from wells and to better monitor escaping methane.
“The impact of this historic rule can’t be overstated,” Regan said. “This is what global climate leadership looks like.”
Countries, businesses and donors have raised $1bn in funding to help reduce methane emissions around the world, an update at Cop28 revealed.
