Long-term study suggests landfill methane emissions are far higher than estimates

AI Summary

A long-term study of methane emissions at a New Jersey landfill suggests that methane pollution may be much higher than current estimates. The study highlights methane as a potent greenhouse gas with significant warming potential, raising environmental and climate concerns.

Methane is an especially potent greenhouse gas, causing much more warming than carbon dioxide on a unit-for-unit basis—and a new, uniquely long-term study of emissions at a New Jersey landfill suggests that estimates of methane pollution in the U.S. and elsewhere may be dramatically off. The study, published by researchers at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, which is part of the Columbia Climate School, used continuous ground-based measurements to determine that landfill methane emissions are likely much higher than current estimates.