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Question for Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

UIN HL3718, tabled on 4 November 2021

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Lord Callanan on 3 November (HL Deb, col 1215), what assessment they have made of the reduction of methane emissions required in different sectors in order for the UK to meet the COP26 pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030; and whether they intend to publish a methane reduction strategy.

Answered on

18 November 2021

The Global Methane Pledge is a commitment for signatories to take voluntary actions to reduce global methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030, against 2020 levels. The UK is proud to have been one of the first signatories to the Global Methane Pledge.

The UK already has a strong record on methane emission reductions, having reduced UK territorial methane emissions by 60% compared to 1990 levels. This is more than any other OECD country. While global methane emissions peaked in 2020, the UK’s methane emissions peaked in 1991 and have decreased substantially since then, due to concerted action across the energy, waste and agriculture sectors. However, we are not resting on our laurels and we will continue to take action to reduce UK methane emissions even further. We have set out our plans to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions across different sectors in the recently published Net Zero Strategy.

International collaboration is vital for making further progress on methane emissions. Sharing best practice, innovative technologies, and collaborating on data and science to ensure we have the most accurate picture of the sources of these emissions, and the most effective solutions. The UK is committed to supporting global action.