Chickens and pigs around the world are helping to reduce global warming by producing less methane compared to cows and sheep. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that is often overlooked in comparison to carbon dioxide, but is crucial in the fight against climate change. Government policies and a UN-backed system of emission credits are benefiting investors, farmers, and major polluters by allowing them to offset their greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide. Methane is much more potent than carbon dioxide in trapping heat in the atmosphere, and it is relatively easy to capture from sources such as animal waste, landfills, coal mines, and leaky natural gas pipes. Climate scientist Paul Fraser from Australia stated that one-fifth of global warming caused by greenhouse gases can be attributed to methane since before the industrial era. Methane levels in the atmosphere have increased significantly since 1750, surpassing natural levels over the past 650,000 years, according to the UN's climate panel. Human activities are primarily responsible for this increase. The panel will focus on strategies to reduce methane and other greenhouse gas emissions in their upcoming report in Bangkok in early May. Bill Hare, climate policy director for Greenpeace and a lead author of the report, believes that reducing methane emissions may be a more cost-effective solution compared to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. He stated that in the United States, there has been a significant emphasis on addressing methane rather than tackling more complex issues like CO2 emissions from coal. This preference is due to the fact that capturing methane from sources such as landfills, mines, and fossil fuel production or natural gas lines is relatively straightforward and economically viable. Methane, a key component of natural gas, can be utilized for power generation. Hare noted that agriculture presents a greater challenge, particularly in terms of methane emissions from livestock and rice cultivation, as changing practices in this sector may require longer time scales compared to industrial areas. Rice fields and other irrigated crops, along with natural wetlands, are significant sources of methane emissions. Additionally, large amounts of methane are stored in deposits under ice in sub-polar regions, permafrost, and under the sea. Various solutions are being explored, such as additives for livestock to reduce methane in their burps and transitioning from intensive feed lots to range-fed animals. Making changes to the flooding timing and methods of rice paddies also has the potential to decrease methane emissions. Despite efforts to reduce methane emissions, levels in the atmosphere have remained steady since 1999, according to Fraser, who leads the Changing Atmosphere Research Group at Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. This is believed to be happening because the drying out of tropical wetlands is offsetting an increase in emissions from the oil and gas industry. However, it is uncertain how long this trend will continue. "Most people believe that at some point in the future, methane emissions will begin to rise again due to the global demand for natural gas, rice, and cattle," Fraser stated. This is why chicken manure and pig waste are in high demand. Through the UN's Kyoto Protocol, rich countries can meet their emissions targets by funding projects in developing countries that reduce greenhouse gases, in exchange for carbon credits. This development has led to significant investment in large pig farms in South America and poultry farms in India. The waste produced from these farms is processed in digesters to extract methane, which is then used to generate electricity or released as CO2. N Yuvaraj Dinesh Babu from Carbon Exchange in Singapore noted an increasing interest in such projects, which trade Kyoto carbon credits and facilitate emissions offsetting deals. The Kyoto system for emissions credits has been popular, with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change approving numerous methane-abatement projects in recent years and considering more. However, Stephan Singer from WWF believes this is not a complete solution. Singer, who heads WWF's European Energy and Climate Policy Unit, believes that more attention should be focused on controlling carbon dioxide emissions and the sources of methane that are difficult to control. Currently, only around 50 percent of all methane emissions are being controlled, particularly those from landfills, coal mines, and the oil and gas industry. Singer is concerned about the increasing methane emissions from ruminant animals, primarily due to the growing beef consumption in a wealthier world. The diet of Western countries has a significant impact on the atmosphere. In the United States, cattle alone emit approximately 5.5 million tonnes of methane annually, making up 20 percent of the country's methane emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In New Zealand, approximately half of all greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture. Singer is particularly concerned about the potential sudden release of methane stored in sub-polar permafrost or vast methane hydrate deposits under the sea. Although this has not yet occurred, some scientists warn that it could happen in a warmer climate. Singer believes that if methane hydrates were to leak, it would be catastrophic.