The reduction of methane emissions plays a fundamental role in the fight against climate change, therefore to avoid the most harmful effects for humanity and the planet. The signatory states of the are well aware of this Global Methane Pledge and IMEO (International Methane Emissions Observatory), an initiative of UNEP and in which the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) also participated, which involves governments and companies around the world to accelerate emission reduction through the collection of advanced data, an important step for address the problem globally.
The Global Methane Pledge was announced last September and launched on Tuesday November 2nd at Glasgow and reflects a shared effort by the European Union and the United States. As part of the Methane Moment, a pavilion set up in the Blue Zone of the COP26 in collaboration with other international partners, including UNEP, the Clean Air Task Force, the Climate & Clean Air Coalition and the World Resources Institute, there will be a discussion on the reduction of emissions and on the roadmap to hit the "switch off" date.
Italy was among the first to support the pledge to reduce global methane emissions by 30% by 2030. “The Global Methane Pledge, launched on Tuesday in Glasgow, is an important step in tackling methane emissions globally – he underlined Dagmar Droogsma, AVP European Strategy & Engagement of Edf -. COP26 will put pressure on other countries to join the pledge. We applaud Italy as one of the first nations to support the initiative”.
There are about twenty countries that Europe and the United States will try to convince first, including major emitters such as China, Russia, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Norway, Qatar, Great Britain, New Zealand and South Africa.
“We also welcome the fact that major Italian gas industries have recently signed on to a strategy to reduce methane emissions from the Italian natural gas supply chain.” concluded Droogsma. This is the first agreement that expresses the will of the main industries of a member state to reduce methane emissions from the supply chain natural gas.
Then again in Italy, as part of the program ALL4Climate-Italy 2021, dedicated to the collateral events of COP26, the EDF promoted two conferences on: "Space research for the purpose of environmental monitoring" and "For a transnational ethical-climate responsibility". The first reviewed the new satellite remote sensing tools for identifying emissions from space, and involved the top international experts in the sector, while the second set itself the objective of promoting careful reflection on the responsibility of consumer countries to fossil fuels regarding the climate-changing emissions of supplier countries.
Ilaria Restifo, the Italian representative, added: “We are satisfied with the work done over the years. There is still work to be done to translate the commitments into concrete actions. The contribution of methane to global warming now appears to be widely recognized by the sectors of interest. Looking beyond the COP26, the next important appointment will be the EU legislative proposal on the strategy to reduce methane emissions in Europe, following the plenary vote of the Parliament last October 21st.”
