Satellites have detected methane emissions from belching cows at a California feedlot, marking the first time emissions from livestock - a major component of agricultural methane - could be measured from space.
Environmental data firm GHGSat this month analysed data from its satellites and pinpointed the methane source from a feedlot in the agricultural Joaquin Valley near Bakersfield, California in February.
This is significant, according to GHGSat, because agricultural methane emissions are hard to measure and accurate measurement is needed to set enforceable reduction targets for the beef-production industry.
An image from a satellite showing concentrations of methane emissions in California's Joaquin Valley. Credit: GHGSat/2BBCAmos
Agriculture contributes 9.6 per cent to US greenhouse gas emissions, according to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and about 36 per cent of methane emissions, mostly from livestock.
The Biden administration late last year announced its plan to crack down on methane emissions from the US economy.
The EPA unveiled its first rules aimed at reducing methane from existing oil and gas sources that require companies to detect and repair methane leaks. Meanwhile, the Agriculture Department rolled out a voluntary incentive program for farmers.
At last year's climate talks, more than 100 countries pledged to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent and to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030. Much of this reduction would need to come from the livestock industry, according to the UN food agency, which said that livestock accounts for 44 per cent of man-made methane emissions.
Several methods to reduce livestock methane emissions are being tested, including adding to cattle diets.
GHGSat provides its data to the United Nations' International Methane Emissions Observatory program.
