It’s the world’s ‘other’ greenhouse gas, and it’s about 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere..Now Canada is taking steps to clamp down on methane, which accounts for about a fifth of global emissions..Methane comes from a variety of sources, including landfills, coal mining, stationary and mobile combustion, wastewater treatment and agriculture — think belching cows..But the largest portion, almost half, come from the oil and gas sector according to the Government of Canada’s 2023 greenhouse gas inventory. And 98% of those are so-called ‘fugitive’ emissions from venting, flaring and leaky gas wells..“These emissions are challenging to quantify, and can be significant,” said Marc D’Iorio, assistant deputy minister of Science and Technology at Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC)..“Significantly reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sector is a critical part of Canada’s climate plan to reduce pollution in the oil and gas sector, improve air quality, drive innovation in the industry and transition to net zero,” the government says on its web site..The good news is the Canadian industry managed to cut methane emissions by 35% in 2021 compared to 2012 even though oil and gas production has increased by an equivalent 35% in the same time frame..Because methane is short-lived compared to CO2, — about 12-15 years — achieving significant reductions would have a rapid and significant effect on atmospheric warming potential, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency..The bad news is the Canadian government has regulations in place to reduce them 75% by 2030 in accordance with United Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reporting requirements and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines..In 2016 Canada and the US issued a joint statement to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, particularly with respect to the Arctic..Last November ECCC proposed a new regulatory framework to expand on existing rules to cover virtually all facilities handling natural gas “where feasible.” That’s because a certain amount of venting is required for safety reasons..Still, oil and gas producers can expect the regulations to get a whole lot tighter after the new policies are in place. .“Our department is currently developing strengthened methane regulations to meet our 2030 objectives and we plan to release proposed regulations later this year,” D’Iorio said..Key to that effort will be new monitoring technology. By some estimates, methane emissions are vastly under reported. According to D’Iorio new technologies include aircraft imaging and new satellites.
