As the old saying goes, 'you can't manage what you don't measure'....
According to Carbon Mapper, the nonprofit behind a new methane-detecting satellite (reported to be 'no bigger than a mini-fridge'):
- Methane gas is roughly 80 times more potent than CO2 over a 20 year period.
- Between 20% and 60% of methane emissions from US oil and gas basins come from just 1% of 'super-emitting' sources.
- The new satellite will attribute emissions within 50 meters of super emitters, which include oil and gas wells, large livestock operations, landfills, and industrial refineries.
- Carbon Mapper currently conducts aerial emissions surveys and reports findings to regulators, saying, “in nearly 50% of the cases, more than half of what we were seeing was unknown to them".
- Why (you might ask), because as usual regulators are way behind the tech curve and using decades-old, people-intensive approaches to measure emissions.
- According to Harvard Professor Daniel Jacob, who specializes in atmospheric chemistry, many government agencies are hesitant to use satellites to track emissions and set regulations. “It still feels a bit exotic,” according to Professor Jacob. “It’s why the EPA prefers having people walking around with handheld devices — which is an awful way to measure emissions. But they understand it more.”
- Instead of industry-bashing and blanket mandates that spike commodity prices and often make no economic sense, perhaps it's time to shift the culture of our regulatory bodies to adopt a contemporary view of how these new technologies can significantly improve the accuracy of finding and shutting down these specific super-emitter locations (in way more efficient means than a bunch of gov't employees and contractors armed with pickup trucks and hand held devices).....