Methane, the Neglected Greenhouse Gas

Abstract

While you have probably heard of carbon dioxide (CO2) and its role in climate change, do you know about its less-famous partner, methane? Methane also warms our planet, and the amount of methane in the air has more than doubled since the Industrial Revolution, with especially rapid increases in recent years. Methane comes from human activities such as farm animals, landfills, and the fossil fuel industry, and natural sources like wetlands, especially as climate change makes wetlands bigger and warmer. Luckily, methane does not stay in the atmosphere as long as CO2 does, which means that if we can reduce methane emissions now, we can make a substantial difference in keeping Earth healthier in our lifetimes. In this article, we will explain where methane comes from, describe its role in climate change, and tell you how both methane and CO2 emissions can be reduced—sometimes by the same strategies!