What can we do to stop rising levels of methane?
More than 100 countries signed the Global Methane Pledge at COP26 to curb methane – but emissions are rising rapidly. What can we do about it?
Recent research shows that levels of Methane gas in the atmosphere are rising rapidly. It is over 80 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide so poses a major threat to the world’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 C.
At COP26, over 100 countries signed a Global Methane Pledge to reduce man-made emissions by 2030 – experts say cutting methane emissions is ‘the most powerful lever we have for reducing warming... over the next 30 years’.
So what can be done to stop the levels rising further? We hear how farmers in Bangladesh, along with other parts of Asia, are using wetting and drying techniques in rice paddies to reduce emissions; how cows are being fed special dietary supplements with a surprising ingredient: seaweed, but why naturally occurring wetlands are a cause for concern.
Presenters Kate Lamble and Neal Razzell are joined by:
Xin Lan, Greenhouse Gas Scientist with NOAA and University of Colorado
Drew Shindell, Special Representative on Methane Action for the Climate and Clean Air Coalition
Ermias Kebreab, Professor at the Department of Animal Science at the University of California, Davis,
Humnath Bhandari, Bangladesh country representative, International Rice Research Institute,
Producers: Alex Murray and Serena Tarling
Researcher: Immy Rhodes
Reporter: Akbar Hossain, ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Bengali
Series Producer: Alex Lewis
Sound engineer: Tom Brignell
Editor: Richard Vadon
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Broadcasts
- Mon 30 May 2022 01:32GMT³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ World Service
- Mon 30 May 2022 08:06GMT³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ World Service
- Mon 30 May 2022 12:32GMT³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ World Service East and Southern Africa, South Asia, West and Central Africa & East Asia only
- Mon 30 May 2022 19:06GMT³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ World Service except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa
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