Deemed largest emitter of methane gas, Turkmenistan could be star of COP28 [Gas in Transition]

Deemed largest emitter of methane gas, Turkmenistan could be star of COP28 [Gas in Transition] — Natural Gas News Deemed largest emitter of methane gas, Turkmenistan could be star of COP28 [Gas in Transition] Summary Experts tell us that methane is far more dangerous for global warming than carbon dioxide and that emissions of the powerful gas need to be contained as quickly as possible if the world is to deal adequately with climate change. But a recent study focused on methane emitters carried out by the French data asset collection organisation Kayrros and reported on by the Guardian newspaper has revealed a surprise top emitter of methane gas – the Central Asian state of Turkmenistan. [Gas in Transition, Volume 3, Issue 5] by: Gary Lakes The Gates of Hell is a real place. Located near the Turkmen village of Darvaza in the Karakum Desert, the 70-mwide Darvaza gas crater has been burning since 1971 when it was deliberately set alight by Soviet geologists after they had accidently drilled into an underground cavern filled with natural gas. The gas discovery resulted with the ground beneath the drilling rig collapsing into the cavern and creating a huge crater. Fearful of the large amounts of gas that was seeping from the crater and leaking into the atmosphere, the geologists set the gas alight, expecting that it would burn out sometime thereafter. But 50 year later, the Gates of Hell, as it has come to be known, continues to burn bright enough to be seen from space. The Darvaza crater is probably the largest gas flare in the world and numerous efforts have been made to extinguish it, but to no avail. In January 2022, Turkmen President Gurb…