The oil and gas industries emit methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases, during the production of these raw materials, and according to the national inventories that states carry out, these emissions are relatively low. However, researchers at Princeton University in the United States believe that the data presented in national pollutant emission inventories are underestimated.
This is particularly true of methane, which is the main contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide, and whose main anthropogenic sources of release into the atmosphere are the extraction and transport of oil and gas. Scientists at Princeton University estimate that these activities could be emitting far more greenhouse gases than experts have indicated to date.
In the United Kingdom, for example, scientists estimate that the amount of methane emitted by the offshore industry is five times greater than that announced by the government. According to the researchers, this difference can be explained by an erroneous calculation method and is not specific to the United Kingdom, as many countries use the same calculation method.
Scientists are particularly concerned about the emission factors related to the discovery, extraction and production of offshore oil and gas. Some of these factors, which represent an estimate of the methane emissions associated with each activity, are, according to the scientists, obsolete or ill-adapted.
In particular, they are not sensitive to environmental conditions and do not take into account the leaks that occur systematically when offshore platforms are shut down. The characteristics of methane, which are a relatively short life span and an ability to retain heat, make reducing its emissions an effective way to fight global warming. Previous work has shown that efforts to reduce methane leakage throughout the oil and gas supply process can improve global warming targets and remain cost-effective.
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