China, the world’s largest emitter of methane, announced this Wednesday that it will strengthen monitoring, reporting and data transparency to reduce emissions of this greenhouse gas.
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment detailed in a document this Wednesday strategies to reduce methane emissions in sectors such as mining and agriculture.
According to the declaration, China intends to establish a system for monitoring, accounting, reporting and verifying methane emissions, improve legislation, standards and economic incentive policies, and promote technological innovation and international cooperation in this area, although it does not set specific reduction targets.
Methane is a greenhouse gas with “high warming potential,” and “controlling methane emissions has climate, economic, environmental and safety benefits,” the document says.
The plan acknowledged challenges to its implementation, including “the lack of a strong statistical and monitoring framework, an inadequate regulatory framework, and the need to improve technical capacity.”
Last July, US climate envoy John Kerry called on China to decarbonize its energy sector, cut methane emissions and reduce deforestation during an official visit to the country.
The vast majority of China’s energy production-related methane emissions come from coal, which produces more than half of the Asian country’s electricity.
China is the world’s largest emitter of energy-related methane emissions, with 28 million tons per year, followed by Russia (18 million tons) and the United States (17 million tons), according to the International Energy Agency.