Since the entry into force of Paris Agreement, Politicians in many countries around the world have pledged to curb greenhouse gas emissions, including more CO2. The global economy has shown that it is possible to grow without emitting more greenhouse gases, as Global emissions have remained more or less stable for three consecutive years.However, nearly a hundred scientists have worked to publish a study showing that the explosive release of methane (another greenhouse gas) into our atmosphere threatens to destroy everything that is being done in the fight against climate change.
Methane gas
Methane is, along with CO2 and nitrogen oxide, one of the main greenhouse gases. Although carbon dioxide is the culprit of 80% of global warming, methane traps 28 times more heat. Right now, at present, its concentration in the atmosphere is vastly less than that of CO2. While CO2 exceeded 400 parts per million, methane reached 1.834 but for every billion. In the report that has been published on methane, it is discovered that for years in which methane emissions had stabilized, a decade ago they began to grow again and have not done so until now. Between 2006 and 2015 its increased concentration in the atmosphere it has increased by 20 times. So much methane has been released into the atmosphere that the natural cycle of gas withdrawal has no time to assimilate it and cannot absorb it.
The recent stabilization that we have had in the last three years of CO2 emissions is radically different from the recent and rapid rise of methane. In the study carried out have participated about 90 researchers from 50 institutions. This is the most comprehensive report to date on how much methane is in the atmosphere, how much is removed from the cycle each year, and where all the emissions of this greenhouse gas come from. It is also critical to understand the origin of global warming to address this problem and its relationship with the methane emissions and climate change.
Reduce methane emissions
Food production is responsible for one-third of the . The Paris Agreement aims to reduce CO2 emissions depending on the development of each country. However, methane is not discussed and it is one of the serious problems Since reducing CO2 emissions can help prevent the 2-degree increase in average global temperatures, we also have methane gas, which traps much more heat than CO2. If the concentration of this gas in the air exceeds 1.900 ppb, the reduction in CO2 emissions would be offset by the powerful greenhouse effect of CH4. Remember that the current concentration is 1.834. Therefore, it is crucial to discuss the differences between climate change and global warming to find effective solutions in relation to the methane emissions.
In order to avoid a two degree increase in global temperature, we not only have to reduce CO2 emissions, but also methane emissions. Of the 558 million tonnes of methane emitted each year, 60,8% are due to human activities and the rest are of natural origin (wetlands, termites, geological methane, etc.) A third of anthropogenic emissions come from livestock farming, specifically from the digestive systems of the 2.500 billion head of livestock that, including cows, sheep, and goats, feed half of humanity. Millions of humans depend on rice for their livelihood. Rice paddies are responsible for another 9% of the methane that enters the atmosphere each year, highlighting the need to understand how agricultural production contributes to the methane emissions and the problem of global warming.
There are other sources of human origin, such as waste management or sewage that also produce methane emissions and that could be reduced with the use of technology. However, reducing the part generated in food production it could affect food security and sovereignty in many regions. In fact, as this study shows, livestock and agriculture are two of the sectors responsible for the current increase in emissions. It is necessary to consider the impact of agriculture on the methane emissions and climate change.
The problem with all this is the poor countries, which cannot complicate themselves with something that is already complicated for them, such as supplying the population with food resources. Although methane threatens to weaken the fight against climate change, the problem could turn into opportunity, since methane only lasts 10 years in the atmosphere thanks to the presence of oxygen.
