Biden thanks Prime Minister Imran Khan for joining ‘Global Methane Pledge’

President of the United States Joe Biden has thanked Prime Minister Imran Khan for making Pakistan being the first Asian country to join the ‘Global Methane Pledge,’ which calls for cutting methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030 along with 100 more than countries.

Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Special Assistant on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam, who represented Pakistan at the United Nation’s COP26 conference in Glasgow, Scotland, said that Biden exchanged his views during an interaction on the sidelines of the summit.

A pleasure to interact with @POTUS at @COP26 who thanked @ImranKhanPTI for #Pakistan being the first Asian country to join the #GlobalMethanePledge along with 100 over countries pic.twitter.com/g3dHv68maX

— Malik Amin Aslam (@aminattock) November 2, 2021

Last month, European Union and the US governments had invited Pakistan to join the ‘Global Methane Pledge’.

Methane causing global warming after CO2

Methane (CH4) is the gas most responsible for global warming after CO2. While more short-lived in the atmosphere, it is 29 times more potent than CO2 over 100 years, and 82 times more potent over a 20-year period.

Human-induced sources are roughly divided between leaks from natural gas production, coal mining and landfills on one side, and rice paddies along with livestock and manure handling, on the other.

CH4 levels are at their highest in at least 800,000 years. Reducing the amount of methane seeping into the air would quickly translate into a slowdown of rising temperatures, and help close the so-called emissions gap between the Paris Agreement target of a 1.5C cap on warming, and the 2.7C we are heading for even if all nations honour their carbon-cutting promises.

UN’s COP26 conference

A number of countries on November 2 had joined the pledge to cut emissions of the most potent greenhouse gas by 30 per cent in ten years decade. Experts have termed it the most significant climate commitment so far at the COP26.

More than 120 heads of state and government had gathered in Glasgow at the start of this week for a two-day summit at the start of the UN’s COP26 conference.

The world leaders concluded the summit yesterday with a multibillion-dollar pledge to end deforestation by 2030 – a date too far away for campaigners who want action sooner to save the planet’s lungs.