METHANE, GLASGOW’S TARGET STILL FAR AWAY
- The methane global status report presented at COP30 by UNEP and the CCAC.
- Emissions have fallen and could reach an 8% reduction over the decade, the highest drop ever recorded, but this is still not enough to meet the target set at COP26.
- Most of the measures identified in the report can be implemented at relatively low cost.
On the first day of COP30’s second and decisive week, as climate negotiations entered the core of the political discussions among the various Parties, the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) presented the Global Methane Status report together with the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), which since 2012 has brought together around 200 governments and intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations under the UNEP umbrella, with the goal of reducing the most powerful short-lived climate pollutants: methane, hydrofluorocarbons, ozone and black carbon.
This report is the first comprehensive inventory of global action on methane (the Global Methane Pledge) since it was launched in Glasgow at COP26, whose main objective was a 30% reduction in methane emissions by 2030 compared with 2020 levels.
This provides the clearest assessment of how far we have come, where momentum is building, and what gaps need to be filled to deliver on the promise of rapid methane reductions required to meet climate goals and, in particular, those of the commitment.
The presentation also featured remarks from Dan Jørgensen, European Commissioner for Energy, who emphasised that the Global Methane Status Report “marks the halfway point towards the 2030 target. Five years have passed and we have achieved results. There is growing commitment from industry to provide transparent and reliable data. The Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0 (UNEP’s flagship reporting and mitigation programme for oil and gas emissions) now includes 153 companies across 90 countries, covering 42% of global oil and gas production. However, we must do more if we want to reach our first global goal of reducing emissions by 30% from 2020 to 2030.”
The Danish Commissioner for Energy highlighted that “over the past five years we have seen essential and global parallel action, with an increase in ambitious national action plans and strong regulations. These actions are being implemented, but it takes time to see the results.”
Jørgensen, then added: “effective mitigation requires global standards and robust emissions monitoring. The International Methane Emissions Observatory delivers exactly this. We must continue to support and strengthen its work. I am proud to say that the European Commission is leading these efforts”.
He concluded with a reference to the “energy sector”, which “represents the biggest mitigation opportunity. 72% of mitigation potential comes from the sector. Over 80% of the potential 2030 emissions reductions can be achieved at low cost”.
Key messages from the report
Martina Otto of UNEP, Head of the CCAC Secretariat, presented the substance of the report, stating: “Methane is responsible for about 30% of the warming we are experiencing today. Every degree of reduction counts.”
She then outlined six of the report’s main findings.
The first is that emissions are still rising, but prospects are improving thanks to new waste regulations in Europe and North America, as well as slower-than-expected growth in natural gas markets between 2020 and 2024. Emissions are expected to continue increasing through 2030, but at a lower rate than projected in the 2021 forecasts.
The second key conclusion is that national political commitment can be decisive: thanks to NDCs and National Action Plans (NAPs) submitted by mid-year, global emissions could fall by around 8% this decade. According to Martina Otto, this would represent “the largest and most sustained decline in methane emissions ever recorded, so it works, but it is not working fast enough, which is the message for achieving the global commitment on methane”.
With the full implementation of NDCs and NAPs, the report states, and an 8% reduction in emissions, we could achieve a reduction of 0.06°C in warming by 2050 and every year prevent sixty thousand deaths, avoid 6.1 million tonnes and generate 107 billion dollars in economic benefits.
Comparison of global anthropogenic methane emissions under current legislation projections (CLE) and the current nationally determined contributions and methane action plans (NDCs and MAPs) in the GAINS model, 1990–2030, million tonnes per year, and the global annual benefits associated with the implementation of the NDC and MAP scenario in 2030, excluding the avoided warming by 2050 (average over the period 2040–2070). (Fig. ES 3, from the UNEP/CCAC report)
The third and fourth points highlight that, in order to meet the Glasgow global methane pledge, “ambition must increase and proven solutions must be implemented at scale globally, and here we look at the maximum technically feasible reduction,” the UNEP representative stressed. “Around 40 measures are identified in the report, and already 80% of these measures can be implemented by 2030 at low cost, at an equivalent of 36 dollars per tonne of CO₂ equivalent.”
As for the sectors contributing to methane emissions reductions, it was noted that 72% would come from the energy sector, 18% from the waste sector, and the remaining 10% from agriculture — “but let us not lose sight of the fact that all three sectors are essential; we must look at everything we can do now”.
The fifth key is that the benefits of achieving the global methane pledge are immense: meeting the target “could help us avoid 180,000 premature deaths and 19 million tonnes of crop losses every year by 2030.”
The final point is that 72% of global methane mitigation potential lies within G20 countries. Here, “emissions could be reduced by 36% by 2030 compared with 2020 levels by mitigating methane emissions in the agriculture, waste and fossil fuel sectors,” but “strengthening measurement, reporting and finance is essential to monitor progress, identify major sources and close the investment gap”.
In essence, the message of the report is that we can achieve this, but we must act much more quickly. And ultimately, in line with all mitigation, adaptation and climate finance measures, this is what COPs are for. These reports are, if you will, only the synthesis, translated into numbers, tables, graphs and feasible actions. They must be implemented, and fast.
Article by Paolo Della Ventura, Coordinator of the Climate and Advocacy Section of Italian Climate Network
Cover image from UNEP’s Global Methane Status Report 2025