PA Environment Digest Blog: MethaneSAT-EDF Successfully Test Methane Detection Technology To Be Used To Document Methane Emissions From Onshore Natural Gas Production In North America

On July 10, MethaneSAT, a subsidiary of the Environmental Defense Fund, announced it has successfully tested methane detection technology to be used to measure and track methane emissions from oil and gas operators and other sectors across North America.

The technology was tested in a jet aircraft and will later be deployed aboard a satellite launching in early 2024.

[Note: DEP has funded a methane overflight research study of its own to help identify methane emissions from oil and gas, coal mines and landfills. Read more here. Read more here.]

Methane from fossil fuel operations, agriculture, and other industries causes roughly 30% of today’s global warming, according to the Environmental Defense Fund. Cutting these emissions is the fastest way to slow the rate of warming, while we continue the transition to cleaner energy sources.

Data from MethaneAIR will provide detailed methane emissions data from a region of the world that supplies significant amounts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the European Union.

In 2022, Europe became the primary destination for U.S. LNG natural gas exports with an all-time high of 420 million cubic meters per day.

Aircraft measurements will inform and augment orbital data collection by MethaneSAT, a new satellite now in final testing and scheduled to launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket early next year.

Data from both instruments will be available at no cost, enabling stakeholders worldwide to see and compare the results over time.

Operating from local airports, flights will map and quantify emissions encompassing roughly 80% of U.S. onshore production.

As the world’s largest importer of natural gas, it is vital that the EU takes leadership in global action to reduce methane pollution by tackling emissions from imported fossil fuels, said the Environmental Defense Fund.

New measurement-based data from MethaneAIR, MethaneSAT and other instruments will facilitate faster action to cut oil and gas methane emissions not just within the EU but beyond its borders.

Most methane emissions associated with EU gas imports occur before they reach the EU.

The upstream ‘methane footprint’ is estimated to be up to eight times the emissions from the domestic EU supply chain.

“This data will enable and motivate action,” said Flavia Sollazzo, Senior Director of Energy Transition at Environmental Defense Fund Europe. “For fossil fuel importers like the European Union, this new level of transparency will catalyse methane mitigation through more informed buying decisions and the ability to track progress towards the EU’s climate goals.”

According to the International Energy Agency, the spending required to cut methane emissions in the Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario is less than 2% of the net income received by the industry in 2022 globally.

“We have the technology and solutions to cut methane today. Data from these new instruments will tell us where emissions are coming from, how much is being emitted, and how emissions are changing over time. This will be a game changer,” said Daniel Zavala-Araiza, Senior Scientist at Environmental Defense Fund, which created the MethaneSAT mission in 2018.

Highly sensitive imaging spectrometers of MethaneAIR and MethaneSAT will measure methane in the atmosphere with unparalleled sensitivity, making it possible for the first time to determine total methane emissions over wide areas, including detailed maps of both large sources and countless smaller ones down to three parts per billion.

Automated analytics developed by MethaneSAT will track emissions back to their source. Research suggests these diffuse sources account for a large share of total methane emissions.

Measurements from MethaneAIR will start to become available later this summer after a rigorous quality control process.

Like MethaneSAT, MethaneAIR will also measure emissions from agriculture, landfills and other sources.

MethaneAIR was developed jointly by MethaneSAT, Environmental Defense Fund, Harvard University and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. The leased aircraft was adapted and operated by IO Aerospace.

As it does across its global operations, Environmental Defense Fund will determine the greenhouse gas emissions associated with each flight, offsetting them through private sector investment in high-integrity emission reduction projects.

Visit the MethaneSAT website for more information. [PaEN]

(Photo: Map of methane emissions from coal mine and shale gas well from DEP overflight study.)

-- Bay Journal: Satellites, Drones, Special Cameras Join The Fight Against Methane/VOC Pollution From Oil/Gas Wells, Petrochemical Plants, Landfills, Coal Mines In Pennsylvania [PaEN]

-- DEP Methane Overflight Research Study Resulted In Voluntary Reductions In Oil & Gas, Landfill Facilities; Coal Industry Uncooperative [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Proposed Air Quality General Permit For Coal-Mine Methane Enclosed Flares [PaEN]

-- The Guardian: One Of The Worst Global Methane Leaks In 2022 Was In PA - Equitrans In Cambria County; Routine Abandonment, Non-Compliance Of Conventional Gas Wells [PaEN]

-- Environmental Defense Fund, Clean Air Council, Environmental Health Project Sponsor Ad Campaign To Finalize Strong EPA Oil & Gas Methane Emission Limits To Protect PA's Health & Climate

-- York County-based Evangelical Environmental Network: 100,000+ Pro-Life Evangelicals Support Strong Oil & Gas Facility Methane Limits

-- Zefiro Methane Corp. Acquires PA-Based Plants & Goodwin Well Plugging Firm To Create Methane Emission Offsets

-- Harrisburg University Research Cited By 2 Federal Agencies In New Regulations To Fight Methane Pollution From Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities

NewsClips:

-- Public News Service: Report: Oil And Gas Air Pollution Effects On Health Of Pennsylvanians