The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that methane is finally in the spotlight. A Globe editorial says methane is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. The gas is responsible for about a third of increased global temperatures. In Canada, the main source of methane emissions is the oil and gas industry. Federal and provincial rules to cut methane in the fossil fuel industry are already working. It has been a quiet success story. Total oil and gas emissions peaked in 2015 and are down 4 per cent as of 2022, even as production surged. It is because of regulations to address methane emitted in operations and from the many places it leaks. Ottawa's long-awaited plans to cap total emissions in the oil and gas business are set to be released on Thursday. The strategy relies on cutting methane and on carbon capture. While some progress has been made on methane, a lot more needs to be done. Scientists, governments and industry agree it can happen at a reasonable cost. Cutting methane globally by 30 per cent by 2030 is a key part of staying close to the Paris Agreement's goal to limit warming. Ottawa's proposed methane regulations in general make sense. They build on rules the provinces previously endorsed.
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