Reducing methane emissions in the energy sector

Strasbourg, May 9, 2023 - To this day - more than 20 years after the EU Commission's first methane strategy - there is no methane regulation in the EU. The EU Parliament's own-initiative report on the methane strategy already called for all sectors to be addressed and for imports to be included. I voted in favor of this report.

Methane, the main component of fossil gas, is the second most important greenhouse gas, and its concentration in the atmosphere is currently higher than at any time since measurements began. In contrast to other greenhouse gases, it has a short lifespan: after around 12 years, methane is broken down into carbon dioxide (CO2). The molecule itself has a much stronger ability to absorb infrared radiation. As a result, methane is more than 80 times more damaging to the climate than CO2 calculated over 20 years and 30 times more damaging when calculated over 100 years. Methane is responsible for 24% of current global warming and is a precursor to ozone formation. Methane is therefore not only harmful to the climate, but also an environmental and health problem.

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