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- It's not just cow farts
It's not just cow farts
Landfills are belching more methane than ever.
Tarryn Giebelmann
April 16, 2024
Hi friend,
Methane was all over the news (and the atmosphere) last week. This time, it wasn’t the poor cows and their deadly farts that were under the spotlight.
It’s all the food and organic waste that rots in landfills, which are the third largest source of human-related methane emissions after fossil fuels and livestock.
Well, that was until last week, when it was reported that US landfills were found to emit methane at rates nearly triple those previously reported to regulators. (Another report said US landfills emit methane at levels at least 40% higher than reported.)
Why is methane a problem?
Methane is over 25 times more effective than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere over a 100-year period. It’s also responsible for about 30% of the current rise in global temperatures (March was the 10th consecutive month of record-breaking heat).
Scientists say reducing methane emissions is the quickest way to curb global warming—or, at the very least, buy us more time.
But instead of reducing emissions, we’re emitting more of this noxious gas than ever.
Over the past five years, methane levels have risen faster than any time since record-keeping began. If this wasn’t worrying enough, efforts to track methane are significantly underestimating how much of it is actually in the atmosphere.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said methane levels reached historic highs last year, with a Stanford climate scientist saying the spike should terrify us.
How we can help?
Believe it or not, you and I can play a big part in reducing methane emissions from landfills by composting organic waste instead of chucking it in the trash.
A study on the effects of curb-side compost collection programs in New South Wales, Australia, found that, on average, households redirected 4.2kg of waste to composting, which represents 25% of the waste that previously went to landfills.
Researchers estimated that moving a tonne of organic waste from landfills to compost would result in 6% to 26% reductions in methane emissions.
Don’t have curb-side collection in your area? Here’s a beginner’s guide to composting at home.
Luckily, there are smart people in the world who go beyond composting to address the methane crisis.
Climate start-up, Windfall Bio, has developed methane-eating microbes that convert methane emissions into nitrogen fertiliser.
On a larger scale, a waste-to-energy facility in Victoria, Australia, has already diverted 175,000 tonnes of commercial food waste away from landfills and used it to generate clean electricity.
But, as with most things related to sustainability, we can’t wait for or rely on other people to solve the problem. We can all play a part through small actions, like composting or reducing food waste in the first place by eating our leftovers, only buying what we need, and finishing our broccoli.
— Tarryn ✌️
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The good news
🤝 Australia and Tuvalu are going ahead with a landmark security and climate migration pact that will protect Tuvalu's independence while addressing its environmental challenges. Under the deal, Australia will aid Tuvalu in disasters and military threats, and will allow 280 Tuvaluans to migrate to Australia.
💰 The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has allocated US$20 billion in financing for community-based climate projects. It will award grants to eight nonprofits, who will use the money to offer loans to businesses, homeowners, and others to spur clean energy across the country, particularly in low-income neighbourhoods.
🚘 By the end of last year, 31 countries had surpassed a pivotal EV tipping point: when 5% of new car sales are purely electric, signalling the start of mass adoption.
🧑🏽⚖️ The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that countries must better protect their people from the consequences of climate change. This is the first time an international court has ruled on climate change and the first decision confirming that countries have an obligation to protect people from its effects. Meanwhile, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has ruled that Peru was responsible for the physical and mental harm inflicted on 80 people by pollution from a mining plant. It ordered the government to provide free medical care to the victims and to pay each individual over US$30,000 each.
🚰 The Environmental Protection Agency has finalised the US’s first drinking water standard for “forever chemicals”. Known as PFAS, exposure to these chemicals has been linked to an increased risk of cancer, low birth weights, high cholesterol, and negative effects on the liver, thyroid, and immune system.
The bad news
🚨 The UN’s climate chief has warned that the world has two years to take action to avert far worse climate change.
💀 A brutal winter in Mongolia, which froze much of the country’s grazing land, has starved or frozen millions of animals. This year has brought the most snow in 49 years to Mongolia and the deaths of more than 5.9 million livestock. Authorities warn that the worst is yet to come, with 60 million animals facing starvation until new grass sprouts.
😷 The vast majority of carbon dioxide emissions since 2016 can be traced to a group of 57 fossil fuel and cement producers. Together, they produced 80% of the world's CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and cement production.
🌀 Forecasters warn there will be an exceptionally high number of storms this hurricane season. This is because a key area of the Atlantic Ocean where hurricanes form is already abnormally warm. Combined with the El Niño weather pattern, experts expect a remarkably busy season of 23 named storms, including 11 hurricanes—five of them potentially reaching Category 3 or higher. In a typical season, there are 14 named storms with seven hurricanes, and three of them major.
🚨 The ocean has now broken temperature records every day for more than a year, beating previous records by wide margins. Oceans have absorbed the vast majority of the planet’s warming from greenhouse gases, but the “massive, massive records” set over the past year are beyond what scientists would expect to see, even considering climate change. Contributing factors could be the ongoing El Niño event, a reduction in aerosol pollution from container ships, and the eruption of the underwater Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai volcano.
🌊 Flooding could affect one out of every 50 residents in 24 coastal cities in the US by 2050. A combination of sinking land and rising sea levels can lead to the flooding of coastal areas sooner than previously anticipated, new research has found.
🥵 March was the Earth’s 10th consecutive month of record-breaking heat, and the global economy has already overshot the 1.5°C climate target for this year.
🔥 The 2023 wildfire season in Europe was among the worst this century, according to a report on Forest Fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa. More than half a million hectares, an area twice the size of Luxembourg, was scorched by wildfires last year.
🔥 Guatemala has declared a 30-day natural disaster as dozens of fires rage in forests and at a major landfill site in Villa Nueva. Around 44 forest fires (80% of them started by humans) were active across the country on Tuesday.Around 44 forest fires were active across the country last week.
🌀Wild weather:
Business news
💸 The International Maritime Organization has committed to creating the world’s first global carbon price. The proposal would require shipping companies to pay a fee for every tonne of carbon they emit by burning fuel.
👞 Footwear brand Dr Martens will start using recycled leather in some of its ranges as part of its investment in sustainable materials. Dr Martens has committed to making all its footwear from sustainable materials by 2040, when it also aims to be net zero.
🚘 The IKEA Foundation has allocated US$100 million in funding to help developing countries bypass petrol cars and go straight to electric vehicles. Under the "Leapfrogging Partnership" initiative, the foundation will campaign for the EV transition in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.
One small thing you can do
Compost your food and garden waste.
Because lots of little actions combined can add up to something remarkable.
I'll leave you on this happy note...
Molly the magpie and his best friend, Peggy the staffy, became Internet sensations after they developed an unlikely and unshakeable bond. When Peggy's owners saved him, Molly decided to stay and become part of the family.
But because the couple didn't have a permit to keep the magpie at their home on the Gold Coast in Australia, authorities seized Molly a few weeks ago.
Well, that went down like a lead balloon, with the pair’s 800,000+ Instagram followers calling on the government to allow Molly and Peggy to be reunited.
This week, the Queensland premier agreed to issue the permit, and the world is waiting with bated breath to see their reunion.
Until then, enjoy this video of Molly the magpie barking like a dog.
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