Category: Greenhouse_Gases_CN Inflation_Act_2022_Greenhouse_Gas Legislations_MN

A major climate and energy package passed by Congress on Friday would put the United States much closer to its goal of cutting global warming pollution in half by 2030, several independent analyses have concluded.

Landfills are releasing a significant amount of planet-warming methane into the atmosphere from the decomposition of waste, a study suggests.
Scientists used satellite data from four major cities worldwide – Delhi and Mumbai in India, Lahore in Pakistan and Buenos Aires in Argentina – and found that city-level emissions in 2018 and 2019 were 1.4 to 2.6 times higher than earlier estimates.

Landfills are releasing far more planet-warming methane into the atmosphere from the decomposition of waste than previously thought, a study suggests.
Scientists used satellite data from four major cities worldwide — Delhi and Mumbai in India, Lahore in Pakistan and Buenos Aires in Argentina — and found that emissions from landfills in 2018 and 2019 were 1.4 to 2.6 times higher than earlier estimates.

The U.S. Senate climate bill’s fee on oil and gas industry methane emissions will cover less than half the sector’s releases of the powerful greenhouse gas, thanks to concessions made to win over party holdout Joe Manchin, according to a review of the legislation and interviews with lawmakers that negotiated it.

It’s no secret that travelling by aeroplane is the least environmentally friendly method. Emissions per mile travelled are significantly less efficient than any other form of transport; however, the average person flying on a packed passenger flight somewhat mitigates this impact.

The oil and gas industry would face a first-time fee on the excess emission of methane under a breakthrough spending agreement reached on Wednesday by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Joe Manchin.

JET A-1, A straw-colored, kerosene-based fuel used in most big airplanes, is a difficult substance to replace. It’s packed with energy; per unit of weight, at least 60 times as much as the lithium-ion batteries used to propel electric cars. It’s also terrible for the climate. So as the aviation industry has gradually climbed aboard global pledges to get rid of carbon emissions, it has mostly promised to make up for its damage elsewhere—through offsets that might involve planting trees, restoring wetlands, or paying people to preserve ecosystems that otherwise would have been razed. But according to a growing body of research, those efforts leave something out: Most of the planet-warming effects of flying aren’t from carbon dioxide.

“While the Court sided with special interests trying to take the country backwards, it did not take away E.P.A.’s ability to regulate greenhouse gases and protect people from pollution,” Gina McCarthy, the White House climate change adviser, said in a statement, referring to the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

While the concentrations are low, the chemicals are potentially dangerous and some are linked to cancer risk, the researchers found.

Kayrros, a firm that analyzes satellite data, says methane emissions from fossil fuels have intensified, rising faster than the rebound in oil, gas and coal production since the easing of the coronavirus pandemic — a development the firm called “worrisome.”