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Politics : Politics of Energy -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?


To: teevee who wrote (36570)12/13/2012 12:41:36 PM
From: Wharf Rat1 Recommendation  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 86356
 
They skip methane emissions. 25 times as bad.

Air sampling reveals high emissions from gas field
Methane leaks during production may offset climate benefits of natural gas.

  • Jeff Tollefson

      07 February 2012

      Led by researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University of Colorado, Boulder, the study estimates that natural-gas producers in an area known as the Denver-Julesburg Basin are losing about 4% of their gas to the atmosphere — not including additional losses in the pipeline and distribution system. This is more than double the official inventory, but roughly in line with estimates made in 2011 that have been challenged by industry. And because methane is some 25 times more efficient than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere, releases of that magnitude could effectively offset the environmental edge that natural gas is said to enjoy over other fossil fuels.

      nature.com