China and US climate advances could depend on methane reduction

The visit this week to China of the American envoy for the climateJohn Kerry, after years of diplomatic interruptions, could boost cooperation between the world’s two biggest polluters of greenhouse gases on the key issue of methane emissions.

Kerry arrived in Beijing on Sunday for talks aimed at reigniting efforts by China and the United States to curb emissions that contribute to global warming. Experts have pointed out that any cooperation initiative on methane – a gas responsible for nearly 30% of global warming – could be a step forward.

“Methane is especially important for our cooperation”Kerry told Congress on Thursday in Washington. “China agreed to have a methane action plan from our previous talks in Glasgow (in 2021), and again in Sharm el-Sheikh” in November.

During those climate talks at last year’s COP27 in Egypt, China’s top climate envoy, xie zhenhuamade an unexpected appearance at a meeting of the Global Methane Partnership, an initiative led by the United States and the European Union whose goal is to reduce emissions by 30% by the end of this decade, to 2020 levels.

Xie He said Beijing has drawn up a plan with concrete measures to curb methane emissions from energy, agriculture and waste. However, the plan has not yet been made public.

Sources in contact with the team Kerry They said the United States hopes China will unveil the plan before the UN climate conference, the COP28which will be held in December in Dubai.

“It’s the opening salvo so we can sit down and have more serious discussions about methane in China.”said Jonathan Banks, global director for methane prevention Clean Air Task Force (CATF)a non-profit organization based in Boston.

China has set itself the goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions to their peak in 2030 and reaching net zero CO2 emissions by 2060.

But it has yet to set targets for methane and other non-CO2 greenhouse gases, and is still studying how to accurately measure them.

President Joe Biden’s administration aims to decarbonize the US economy by 2050. The Cut Inflation Act of 2022 imposes taxes on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry beginning in 2024, and the government has proposed a rule to clamp down on methane emissions. pollution, including a program of “super emitters” that forces operators to respond to reports by environmentalists and others about large methane leaks.

Source: Reuters