Global emissions of methane, which can have 80 times the warming power of CO2, are surging at their fastest rate in decades, scientists have warned, threatening to escalate the climate crisis, The Guardian reported.
Methane emissions are responsible for half of the global heating already experienced, and have been rising significantly since around 2006, a new paper authored by more than a dozen scientists from around the world and published on Tuesday said, the story on the UK news site went on.
The drilling and processing of oil, gas and coal, fuelled by the boom in fracking, as well as increased animal agriculture has contributed to the rise in methane levels, the study explained, with rising global heat leading to the faster decomposition of organic matter in wetlands, releasing even more methane.
“The growth rate of methane is accelerating, which is worrisome,” said Drew Shindell, a climate scientist at Duke University and lead author of the study. “It was quite flat until around 20 years ago and just in the last few years we’ve had this huge dump of methane.
Read the full story: The Guardian
- By Sean O’Meara
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