Sharm El-Sheikh: A detailed inventory of the top known sources of greenhouse gas emitters launched by former US Vice President Al Gore at the UN climate summit in Egypt on Wednesday found that the top 14 individual polluters are all gas and oil fields and their associated facilities, despite their emissions being "significantly underreported."
The inventory was compiled by Climate TRACE, a coalition of researchers, data analysts and non-governmental organisations who use multiple open sources including satellite coverage, remote sensing and artificial intelligence to track who exactly is polluting, and how much.
Emissions stemming from oil and gas production were already estimated to be about double what was reported to the UN last year and new data on methane leaks and flaring suggests that emissions are likely three times higher than what was reported, Gore said. Methane is a greenhouse gas which is around 80 times more potent in the short term than carbon dioxide.
Gore said the data shows the extent of the "deep cut in greenhouse gas pollution we need to prevent the most catastrophic impacts of the climate crisis."
Hailing the launch of the inventory, the UN Secretary General said the data was vital to address a problem "in front of our eyes, but also hidden in plain sight." "We have huge emissions gaps, finance gaps, adaptation gaps. But those gaps cannot be effectively addressed without plugging the data gaps. After all, it is impossible to effectively manage and control what we cannot measure," Antonio Guterres said.
Some 56 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions were produced in 2021, and the Permian Basin was at the top of emitters with with more than 200 million tons, the data said.
Russia's Urengoyskoye gas field was second on the list with 152 million tons. Gavin McCormick, a co-founder of Climate TRACE, said they estimated greenhouse gas emissions of nearly all the largest emitters globally.
McCormick added that climate negotiators and others working to combat climate change have described the data as "a game changer that can help them make better decisions and decarbonise faster."
The inventory was released as climate negotiators are convening in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt for two weeks to look for ways to implement global climate goals.