Landfills contribute significantly to global climate change, thanks to methane emissions 

Have you ever come across a landfill and passed by without even caring? Well, you are not alone. After all, it’s the site of human refuge, where generations have been disposing and then burying their daily garbage under several layers of earth. However, what we often ignore is how this age-old practice negatively impacts our environment. Recently, research has revealed that such landfills end up emitting much more planet-warming methane from waste decomposition into the atmosphere than thought earlier. Okay, but what does this mean for us? It implies that we all are collectively contributing to climate change! Alarming, isn’t it?  

Methane emission is the culprit  
A latest study published in the open access multidisciplinary journal of American Association for the Advancement of Science called Science Advances and conducted by the Netherlands Institute of Space Research has revealed that methane releases from landfills in 2018 and 2019 were 1.4 to 2.6 times more than previous estimates. Data from high-resolution satellite images tracking landfills from four major global cities namely Delhi, Mumbai, Lahore and Buenos Aires have contributed to the current findings. Notably, this recent study is aimed at aiding local governments carry out targeted efforts to contain global warming by simply pointing out the major areas of concern.  

Methane emission and its harmful impact  
For those unaware, when organic waste like food remains, wood or paper decompose in the landfill sites, they release high amounts of methane into the air. Believe it or not, landfills are the third largest source of global methane emissions, right after oil and gas systems as well as agriculture.  

Okay, but how harmful is methane emission? Well, it turns out that methane only contributes to 11 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. But there are other ways it harms Mother Earth. First, methane once released can impact the atmosphere for more than a decade. Not only that, methane helps transmit almost 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide. Okay, but what does this mean? This means that more than 25 per cent of today’s global warming is the result of methane emissions, making it a ‘super emitter.’ 
 

The implications of the study 
Humans need to manage landfills better and sooner, especially in countries like India, where landfills are more in number and are often on fire. It also means, now more than ever, it is easier to detect the problem sites and take immediate actions, thanks to new satellite technology as well as on ground inspection. Interestingly, China, Russia and India are now the world’s biggest methane polluters, as revealed by another recent study conducted by the International Energy Agency. In case you didn’t know, this study is a step forward after last year’s UN climate conference, where as many as 104 nations had signed a pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030 in comparison to 2020. Surprisingly, India and China are not part of this pact.