Global response rate to UNEP methane alerts rises to 12%; faster action urged

Global responses to more than 3,500 satellite-detected methane alerts from the UN Environment Programme increased from 1% to 12% over the past year, the UNEP said Oct. 22, emphasizing that efforts must accelerate to limit global temperature rise and meet the Global Methane Pledge target of reducing emissions by 30% by 2030.

Launched at the UN Climate Change Conference, or COP26, in 2021, the Global Methane Pledge commits countries to voluntary actions aimed at achieving a collective goal to reduce methane emissions -- the second-largest driver of climate change after carbon dioxide.

"Actions remain too slow to meet the climate goals," Inger Andersen, under-secretary-general of the UN and executive director of UNEP, said at a media briefing. She said that while the Global Methane Pledge is crucial to keeping the Paris Agreement within reach, methane levels continue to rise.

"We have 160 signatories to the Global Methane Pledge, and oil and gas companies representing half of the global production have pledged near-zero methane emissions by 2030, but commitments are nothing without action."

The fifth edition of UNEP International Methane Emissions Observatory's publication -- An eye on methane: From measurement to momentum -- was released Oct. 22.

The report finds that member oil and gas companies of IMEO's Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0, or OGMP 2.0, are on track to monitor one-third of emissions from global production using real-world measurements.

Although government and company responses to alerts from IMEO's Methane Alert and Response System, or MARS, have increased over the past year, nearly 90% still remain unanswered, according to UNEP.

Methane initiatives

A series of initiatives aimed at reducing methane emissions was unveiled at COP29 at the UN Climate Change Conference, in Baku, Azerbaijan, with the involvement of several countries, industry bodies and financial institutions.

The European Commission also launched a new Methane Abatement Partnership Roadmap, designed to accelerate the reduction of methane emissions associated with the production and consumption of fossil fuels.

Japan, which has recently joined the Observatory, will host the ministerial meeting at COP30 on Nov. 14, where industry representatives and civil society will be discussing further cooperation on reducing methane emissions.

"Japan plays an active role in managing methane emissions in the LNG value chain as one of the major importers in the world," Shinichi Kihara, director general for International Policy on Carbon Neutrality Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan, said at the press meet.

"And we have two major initiatives -- one is encouraging voluntary action among industries, and two is contributing satellite data through Japan's state-of-the-art technologies," Kihara said.

IMEO findings

According to the IMEO report, OGMP 2.0 members reported total methane emissions of 2.5 million metric tons in 2025, up from 2 million mt in 2024, revealing previously undetected or poorly quantified emissions.

The report noted that as members measure emissions and identify new sources, many are also actively mitigating those emissions in real time.

Sixty-five companies, representing 17% of global oil and gas production, achieved the gold standard, the highest level of OGMP 2.0 reporting, among those that submitted emissions data, according to the IMEO report.

An additional 50 companies, representing a further 15% of global oil and gas production, achieved the gold standard pathway, the report said. Another 22 companies reported emissions data but did not meet the gold standard requirements.

The IMEO has documented 25 mitigation actions in 10 countries since the launch of MARS, including initiatives in six new countries over the past year.

The report said that new system capabilities will focus on coal mines and waste sites -- sectors where measurement remains limited but where targeted mitigation opportunities are available.

Steel methane

The IMEO's Steel Methane Programme targets emissions from metallurgical coal, which contributes, on average, a quarter of steel's overall climate footprint, the report said. Mining metallurgical coal produces about 12 million mt of methane emissions annually.

"These emissions can be mitigated at just 1% of the cost of steel," the report said. "Despite the availability of low-cost solutions -- like ventilation air methane and drainage systems -- met coal methane remains largely overlooked in steel decarbonization efforts."