Methane mitigation is identified as one of the most cost-effective strategies to rapidly reduce the rate of global warming and contribute substantially to global efforts to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C. One of the key conclusions of the Global Methane Assessment (GMA, UNEP 2022) is that currently available technological measures and policies could reduce emissions from the three main anthropogenic methane emitting sectors (fossil fuels, agriculture and waste) by as much as 45% of baseline emissions levels by 2030 (approximately 180 Mt per year in 2030). The GMA found that every Mt of methane reduced:
- Prevents approximately 1,430 annual premature deaths due to ozone globally. Of those, 740 would have died from respiratory disease and 690 from cardiovascular disease. Every million tonnes of reduced methane emissions could also avoid approximately 4,000 asthma-related accident and emergency department visits and 90 hospitalisations per year.
- Avoids losses of 145,000 tonnes of wheat, soybeans, maize and rice ozone exposure every year. This is roughly equivalent to increased global yields of 55,000 tonnes of wheat, 17,000 tonnes of soybeans, 42,000 tonnes of maize, and 31,000 tonnes of rice annually for every million tonnes of methane reduced.
- Avoids the annual loss of roughly 400 million hours of work, approximately 180,000 years, globally due to extreme heat. Employment within those sectors of the economy that are affected by heat exposure varies between genders, leading to disparities in the impacts for men and women that differ across countries.
A combination of systemic changes in practices and attitudes as well as technology solutions are needed to reduce emissions of this highly potent and harmful gas. While most of these are cost-effective, their widespread adoption requires robust governmental initiatives that would create an enabling environment for such changes, incentivize investment in methane reduction projects and stimulate behavior changes. Such systemic changes along the value chain also call for coordination across different levels of administration, public and private sector, as well as other direct and indirect beneficiaries.
To begin to address these challenges, a Global Methane Pledge (GMP) was launched at COP26 by the European Union and the United States who have been joined by more than 150 countries.
UNEP is the host of two initiatives that are core implementers of the GMP:
- the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), which also acts as GMP Secretariat;
- the International Methane Emission Observatory (IMEO).
Through these two, as well as other related programs, UNEP has extensive experience working on methane reduction in several sectors and industries. The GEF Mitigation Unit works with the CCAC and the IMEO in designing tailored made solutions for developing countries that build on a vast repository of knowledge and expertise in UNEP and across partners to deliver actionable interventions that can bring about meaningful methane reductions and co-benefits, aligned with GEF policies and requirements.
