Australia will aim to provide more accurate assessments of methane emissions after a review of the nation’s climate accounting recommended improvements.
The country, which has committed to cutting total emissions 43% by 2030 from 2005 levels, has previously faced criticism over its calculations of methane pollution and a failure to keep pace with the use of satellites and aerial surveys.
“Methane is among the world’s most powerful greenhouse gases,” Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said Monday in a statement. “It is essential that our measurement approaches continue to improve, based on sound science and expert analysis, as technologies provide additional opportunities for increased accuracy and integrity.”
An expert panel led by Australia’s Chief Scientist Cathy Foley will examine how atmospheric measurement technologies could enhance emission estimates, Bowen’s department said.
Agriculture, waste management and energy production, particularly the nation’s coal mining sector, all contribute to methane releases, which account for about 29% of the country’s total emissions.
Fugitive methane emissions from Australia’s oil and gas sector could have been underreported by as much as 90% and by 80% for coal mining, according to research by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
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Major revisions to emissions data could have implications for Australia’s climate goals, as well as for producers and importers that need to calculate the climate impact of supply chains. Australia is the world’s No. 2 coal exporter and a key supplier of liquefied natural gas.
Officials will study a methodology used to estimate methane emissions from open cut coal mines. Operators have been able to determine their own emissions factors — estimates for how much methane a mine might normally release per unit of output.
An analysis by energy think tank Ember in June warned that the company-led approach could allow mine operators to avoid reporting hundreds of thousands of tonnes of methane pollution.
