Science

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has recognized methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) as the two most important greenhouse gases, i.e., substances that absorb infrared radiation and thus contribute to global warming. Their concentrations in the atmosphere have been strongly affected over the years by human activity. According to IPCC, during the past 250 years, the CH4 level in the atmosphere has increased by ca. 162%. Despite its lower atmospheric concentration relative to CO2, methane has a global warming potential (GWP) 28 times higher (on a 100-year horizon) than that of CO2. However, recent studies show that this

value has increased to 32 and taking into account the additional carbon footprint, it amounts to 34 on a 100-year horizon and 86 on a 20-year horizon5. Additionally, the radiative impact attributed to methane emissions is approximately 0.97 Wm² and considering its relatively short lifetime (11.2 +/- 1.3), a reduction of its emissions may have a short-term effect on its radiative forcing. This, in turn, makes methane emissions observations an excellent source of information on climate change. […]”