Environment

Potent Greenhouse Gas Methane on the Rise

by Barbara McPherson | February 24, 2009 at 10:38 am

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While much of the world is now focussing on reducing the production of carbon dioxide, a more potent greenhouse gas has been on the rise. Methane levels have begun a slow creep upward after about a decade of stability. Methane is composed of one atom of carbon and four atoms of hydrogen and is even more efficient at keeping the atmosphere warm than carbon dioxide (one carbon atom and two oxygen atoms)

Methane gas occurs naturally as methane hydrate, in coal, and in natural wetlands. These are considered 'sinks' or banks of methane where it is sequestered. The tundra area of the northern hemisphere hold massive quantities of this gas. Human activities release methane into the air - mining coal, cultivating rice fields, livestock production, forest and grassland fires.

As temperatures worldwide inch upward, the vast northern tundra regions release more methane both during the summer melting months and also during the refreezing process adding to the greenhouse effect in a positive feedback mechanism.

"After eight years of near-zero growth in atmospheric methane concentrations, levels have again started to rise.

"This is not good news for future global warming," says CSIRO's Dr Paul Fraser, who co-authored a paper to be published in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysccical Union." Environmental News Network

Livestock Farming One of the Main Menaces for the Environment.

Goddard Institute for Space Studies

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Amy Judd

at 11:33 on February 24th, 2009

Thanks for bringing back our awareness to this.

kuuva

at 12:15 on February 24th, 2009

yes I heard about this a few years back.

check out this wiki summary, read about abrupt climate change.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_methane_release

Current methane release has previously been estimated at 0.5 Mt per year.[13] Shakhova et al (2008) estimate that not less than 1,400 Gt of Carbon is presently locked up as methane and methane hydrates under the Arctic submarine permafrost, and 5-10% of that area is subject to puncturing by open taliks. They conclude that "release of up to 50 Gt of predicted amount of hydrate storage [is] highly possible for abrupt release at any time". That would increase the methane content of the planet's atmosphere by a factor of twelve.[14].

heller_dk

at 14:14 on February 24th, 2009

Happy cows in Denmark. December 25. 2008.

heller_dk has contributed a photo to this story.

ewenhwatt

at 14:47 on February 24th, 2009

These Lambs, only a few days old were photographed in Aberdeenshire Scotland U.K. on February 22nd 2009. Very early Lambs indeed, Spring must be here!

ewenhwatt has contributed a photo to this story.

Paschen

at 15:45 on February 24th, 2009

Methane is okay if burned and used instead of Natural Gas or Propane.

ubuntucola

at 05:43 on February 25th, 2009

This photo was taken by a sugar cane farmer in Southern Malawi.

ubuntucola has contributed a photo to this story.

Paschen

at 15:23 on February 25th, 2009

You will always have CO2 and CO3 yet you want to reduce it and way you do not want to burn fossil fuels such as Natural Gas or Propane and use renewable Gas such Methane since methane is worth for the Environment in its raw form then once burned. Human produce methane as all Animals and insects or decomposing plants do.