Report

The climate emergency brake: an ambitious plan to cut UK methane emissions

This report from UK think tank Green Alliance highlights low cost interventions that could mean the UK exceeds the methane emissions pledge target.

Reducing methane emissions is the fastest way to address global warming, but the UK is off track in its goal to bring them down.

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas over 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in the short term but, unlike carbon dioxide, it breaks down quickly. Cutting methane now has been described as an ‘emergency brake’ to slow the pace of warming, avoid dangerous climate tipping points and buy time to take action in other areas. The UK is a signatory to the Global Methane Pledge, committed to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030, but is only on track for a 19 per cent reduction.

In this report, we highlight low cost interventions that could mean the UK exceeds the pledge target, cutting methane by up to 37 per cent by the end of the decade. Actions across agriculture, energy and waste would not only cut methane but improve air quality, energy security and economic resilience.

We are asking the government to publish a National Methane Action Plan and take a global lead on this neglected area of climate policy.