Gas Research Institute, Chicago, has started a 3 year, $4-5 million study of the role of natural gas in global warming.
One study will seek to develop data on how much methane is emitted during gas production, distribution, and use in the U.S. GRI will gather emissions data, then extrapolate the data to estimate emissions for the whole industry.
The institute will spend $700,000 on the project this year, supplemented with $300,000 from the Environmental Protection Agency.
A second study will evaluate the relative effectiveness of methane as a greenhouse gas compared with carbon dioxide.
It will use existing atmospheric chemistry and global climate models to determine atmospheric methane chemistry and the lifetimes of emissions.
GRI said the infrared absorption coefficient is about 30 times larger for a methane molecule than for carbon dioxide, but methane has about a 10 year life in the atmosphere vs. 200-500 years for carbon dioxide.
"Decomposition of the methane molecule, however, forms intermediate species that have various lifetimes and greenhouse impacts," GRI said.
A third study will determine whether global warming legislation will regulate methane emissions. It will identify emissions and evaluate the costs of controlling them by various strategies.
A fourth study will establish a cooperative program in the international gas industry. It will seek non-U.S. gas companies as cosponsors.
"It is somewhat uncertain how comprehensive the cooperative program might be," GRI said. "It is already clear that interest is widespread and growing, and there will be information exchange at a minimum."
GRI expects to fund about half the cost of the four studies, with government providing one third and the gas industry the balance.
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