By Jennifer Oldham for Sierra.
Broadcast version by Eric Galatas for Colorado News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

Pumps hissed, a camera oscillated, and wind whistled through oil and gas wells at the Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Center at Colorado State University. The mechanical symphony could be the soundtrack to a revolution in our ability to detect and measure methane, the invisible, odorless "super pollutant" responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The United States is the world's largest producer of oil and gas and its biggest emitter of methane-much of it leaks from oil and gas operations. A raft of new federal and state laws require energy companies to monitor and fix emission leaks. That's why companies are lining up to test methane-detection devices at the Fort Collins facility.

"Things are moving quickly-people have realized legislators aren't messing around," said Ryan Brouwer, facility manager at the testing center. "We have 12 different companies testing now. I am booked until the fall, and we have a waiting list."

Brouwer showed off high-pressure tanks that feed gas into wells, other tanks, and separators. Their valves, pipe joints, and other fittings leak the methane-the main component of "natural gas"-into the air. Then finely tuned handheld sensors, softball-size devices mounted on hefty tripods, and equipment attached to drones and aircraft go to work. These sensors report their readings of the rate, location, and duration of leaks to center scientists, who then compare them with data on the known releases.

Why all the fuss? Because methane is an enormously powerful greenhouse gas, 80 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat. As an article from the Rocky Mountain Institute put it, "If CO2 pollution wraps one blanket around the earth, methane pollution is like wrapping the earth in over 80 blankets." Studies show that eliminating these emissions would lead to immediate benefits for the climate and public health.

The concentration of methane in the atmosphere today is two-and-a-half times preindustrial levels, and accelerating. Agriculture is the largest anthropogenic source (all those belching cows, mostly), followed by oil, coal, gas, and bioenergy, which account for 46 percent of emissions. Rotting organic material in landfills is another major contributor.

Of these offenders, the emissions from fossil fuels are perhaps the easiest to deal with, as it's largely a matter of plugging leaks. According to the International Energy Agency, methane emissions from fossil fuels must drop by three-quarters this decade to meet the Paris Agreement climate goals. Hence the race at the Colorado State center to develop and improve methane-detecting sensors on the ground and in the air. As these technologies improve, scientific studies are finding that earlier calculations widely underestimated the actual amount of the gas in the atmosphere.

"We saw so much variability in methane emissions across the regions," said Evan Sherwin, who led research at Stanford University for a paper published in Nature in March. "If we compare our numbers to the Environmental Protection Agency's numbers, ours were three times higher."

Sherwin worked with a team from Stanford, Kairos Aerospace (now Insight M), and other labs to conduct aerial surveys over six hydrocarbon-producing regions, taking a million measurements over Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, and Pennsylvania. They estimated that the operations emitted 6.2 million tons of methane a year-equivalent to all the CO2 emissions from fossil fuel use in Mexico.

"We found [that] as low as .05 percent of oil and gas production facilities are responsible for half or more of emissions," said Sherwin, who is now at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "We really do now have the tools to find the bulk of the emissions that matter pretty rapidly."

In addition to worsening the climate crisis, methane emissions represent an annual loss of $1 billion to the gas companies. The prospect of recovering that leaking gas is incentivizing energy companies worldwide to fix methane leaks discovered by satellites. Six years ago, energy companies in the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative invested in the satellite company GHGSat; they've used the satellites to help detect and quantify leaks in Iraq, Algeria, Egypt, and Kazakhstan. After the results were confirmed with on-the-ground testing, local operators fixed the leaks, said Bjørn Otto Sverdrup, chair of OGCI's executive committee.

"Three problems we discovered were approximately equal to a million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent," he said. "It's like taking away close to 250,000 cars." Methane detection and measurement, he concluded, "is now at a point where we may be able to start moving the needle at scale." Indeed, data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that the methane increase in the atmosphere in 2023 slowed from the record growth earlier this decade. Even so, the year marked the fifth-highest increase since 2007.

More than a dozen satellites now orbit the planet scanning for methane plumes. Some are privately owned; others are operated by governments and nonprofits. Data from select satellites are available on the International Methane Emissions Observatory's online data portal.

Mark Brownstein is a senior vice president at the Environmental Defense Fund, which developed its own methane-detecting satellite, MethaneSat. "This is data that will provide the most comprehensive amount of emissions and the rate at which they are being emitted," he said. "We see this data as being incredibly important to hold countries and companies accountable to commitments they've made."

Satellites have limitations though. They can't see past cloud cover or over water, and they have time constraints on how much data they can collect from any one location. Consequently, said Dan Zimmerle, the director of Colorado State's methane center, all types of sensors are needed to make progress in fixing leaky oil and gas equipment and spotting flares that fail to fully combust all the gas being vented.

Zimmerle's operation is set to receive $25 million from the Department of Energy and industry partners to modernize equipment, standardize testing solutions, and support field trials of methane-sensing satellites. The team is searching for locations to test how the satellites are performing.

"We will put up a test release," Zimmerle said. "They will task on it, we will get a report from them that says what they saw, and we will compare it to the real thing."


Jennifer Oldham wrote this article for Sierra.


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A group of Florida middle schoolers is tackling water pollution in an unconventional way - by collecting scientific samples while surfing and skateboarding. The SurfSkate Science program in South Florida, featured in the upcoming CBS series "The Visioneers," trains students to monitor water quality along coastal areas, with their data contributing to a national NOAA database. The Sunshine State's struggle with water quality and climate impacts has made it a laboratory for grassroots solutions, so intrepid host Zay Harding dives into a mission of discovery highlighting those working to protect the planet.

"There has got to be a way to make this exciting for them; how do we tie in skating or surfing with this? And so they are letting their kids do this and bring their friends and then educating them to being aware of it, and that's really what the whole series is about," he explained.

While this series circles the globe showcasing climate solutions - from Norway to Arizona - it keeps coming back to Florida, featuring three innovations, and that's no accident. With rising seas and record storms, Florida has become a lab for climate survival tactics. "The Visioneers" premieres Saturday at 9 a.m. EDT.

The series also features Miami-based Kind Designs, a startup fighting flooding with 3D-printed "living seawalls" that mimic mangrove roots. Harding said the founder, Ukrainian immigrant Anya Freeman, was inspired after years of wading through Miami's flooded streets.

"She said I've got to get my head around this and try to come up with a solution, and she's come up with these seawalls that are now protecting Florida. Yeah, it's these people who are getting mad, then making change," Harding continued.

The series showcases how everyone can contribute to climate solutions - from former lawyers to schoolchildren.

Thais Lopez Vogel, cofounder and trustee of VoLo Foundation, said the inclusive approach is key.

"Through emotions, through actions, through doing things. So I think this is a different way to tackle the climate crisis. We are trying to do it in every angle, and this one is going to be very, very effective," Vogel said.

The series comes as the state has seen a 5% increase in high-tide flooding since 2000, according to NOAA's 2024 Sea Level Rise Report, while a Florida Climate Institute study estimates coastal erosion costs $1.4 billion annually.

The U.S. Supreme Court this month declined to hear a case brought by youth activists, who argued the federal government has failed to protect them from climate change.

Minnesota teens are also elevating their voices on this topic. The court case was seen as a potential game-changer in highlighting the influence the fossil fuel industry has on federal policy.

Separately, a coalition of Minnesota high school students is pushing the Legislature to approve a bill that would bring climate justice education to classrooms in the state.

Wayzata High School Sophomore Ansh Shah said if his generation will have to help with solutions, they'll need the facts.

"We haven't had stuff taught to us on our own," said Shah. "We have to go out and we have to find all these information sources ourselves. And if we had, like, actual curriculum in schools, it'll make it a lot easier for people to be informed on this and actually want to make an effort."

The bill calls for a model program - consistent with state standards - with some focus on how marginalized communities often face the worst effects of climate change.

Similar to the national court case, the Minnesota effort has run into setbacks. Earlier proposals didn't gain traction in recent legislative sessions - and so far, this one hasn't received much attention.

But like their peers elsewhere in the country, these Minnesota students feel their effort will turn some heads, even if they're not always successful.

Fellow Wayzata Sophomore Vedanth Srinivasf said despite the urgent tone associated with climate change, it's important to think longer-term.

"Climate change isn't something that's going to be solved in the next 10 years," said Srinivasf. "It'll have to be solved in the next 50 years. So, starting right now, through small incremental steps, is a solution."

These students will be well into their professional careers by the time Minnesota is required to meet its goal of generating 100% carbon-free electricity in the state.

A landmark law signed by Gov. Tim Walz two years ago says that mandate has to be met by 2040.




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The Pacific Northwest Water Year Impacts Assessment, an important resource for managing drought and other climate extremes, was published today. The assessment tracks impacts of weather conditions on different sectors across Washington, Oregon and Idaho. The 2024 water year, which starts and ends in the fall, was Washington's fourth warmest in more than 100 years. Higher temperatures and low snowpack contributed to drought in much of the state, according to the new data.

Karin Bumbaco, climatologist and lead author of the assessment, says the research is helpful to understand cumulative impacts of drought on the region.

"Even though our snowpack is doing better now compared with last year, that really has to be seen through the lens of deficits from the previous year and even before," she explained.

Bumbaco added that in the last decade, droughts have been more frequent than usual in Washington. The assessment focuses on impacts of either too much or too little water on seven sectors, including agriculture, drinking water, fisheries and forestry.

Bumbaco said the agricultural sector in Washington reported the highest number of impacts from dry conditions last year.

"That can range from limited water availability, reduced crop yields. There was also quite a few reports about negative consequences for livestock and grazing," she continued.

Bumbaco said heat, fire and smoke forced recreation areas to close, and the drought brought increased insect activity and tree mortality. This is the fifth Water Year Assessment, and Bumbaco added that along with the challenges she has noticed more people working to mitigate impacts of a changing climate.

"There seems to be more climate resilience being built across our region. And people are taking actions to kind of avoid the worst impacts from either really wet conditions or really dry conditions," she said.

For example, she said farmers are changing crops, as well as the timing of irrigation, and monitoring water use and availability more closely. While some areas of the state saw reduced stream flow, increasing salmon mortality, the assessment was not all bad news. Bumbaco said a well-timed August rain supported a record salmon run in North Central Washington.





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