When it comes to methane emissions, stop blaming cows—blame trash. Landfills emit the greenhouse gas at almost three times the rate previously reported to regulators, according to a new study published in Science.
Using a new technology called imaging spectrometers, scientists collected data from 20% of the largest landfills in the US by flying over them and measuring the concentration of methane in the air. Previous estimates of methane emissions were based mostly on computer models, not real data, because of the dangers of manually measuring emissions, which required workers to walk around active dump sites with handheld sensors.
The new study found that over half the landfills tested were emission hotspots known as methane plumes caused by decades’ worth of decomposing trash. Methane has 80 times the warming capacity of carbon dioxide in the short term. Most climate change policies that target methane emissions focus primarily on the oil and gas industry, but the scientists behind the study argue that their data proves landfills should also be considered.
Source: Morning Brew
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