Washington (April 19, 2021) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate, and Nuclear Safety, today wrote to President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. to encourage the Biden administration to include methane emissions reduction targets in the national commitments and dialogue at the Leaders Summit on Climate this week. Methane has 80 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide over a 20-year time period, and emissions of this potent greenhouse gas continue to rise. Immediate methane reductions are feasible using existing technology and regulatory powers, and would facilitate more ambitious economy-wide nationally determined contributions (NDCs) of greenhouse gas reductions as part of the Paris Climate Agreement negotiations.

 

“The impending NDC announcement provides a critical opportunity to meet the worsening climate crisis with bold solutions, including through a reduction in methane emissions,” writes Senator Markey in the letter to President Biden. “The inclusion of a specific methane emissions reduction target in the broader NDC and the discussion of methane emissions at the Leaders Summit would help address near-term global warming, support global methane reductions, and strengthen our national response to the climate crisis.”  

 

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.

 

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