China tightens rules to limit methane emissions from coal mines

China's Ministry of Environmental Protection said Thursday it will impose tighter limits on methane emissions from coal mining in a bid to curb emissions of the powerful climate-warming gas.


While methane is a significantly more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, it stays in the atmosphere for only about 10 years compared to 1,000 years for CO2, meaning that quickly cutting emissions could halt warming relatively quickly.

More than 150 countries have already committed to reducing methane emissions by 30% by 2030. China, the world's biggest emitter, has not yet committed to that goal, but last year it promised to capture more methane from mines and tighten controls on livestock farms and landfills.

“Proactive, sustainable and disciplined control of methane emissions will provide climate benefits by slowing the rise in global temperatures, economic benefits from the use of energy resources... and safety benefits by reducing work-related accidents,” a ministry spokesman said Thursday.

Under the new rules, mines emitting 8% methane or more, or more than 10 cubic meters of pure methane per minute, must capture the gas. Gas that cannot be used must be destroyed.

This value was lowered from the previous threshold of 30% set in 2008 to prevent mine explosions and encourage the use of coalbed methane as a fuel.

The ministry said all new mines will have to come into compliance by April next year, while existing mines will be given until April 2027.

China's 3,000 coal mines account for about 40% of the country's methane emissions, and about the same amount comes from agricultural activities.

The think tank Global Energy Monitor (GEM) said in a study published Thursday that satellites detected up to 23 large methane emissions from coal mines in China, Australia, Colombia and Mexico between January 1, 2023 and April 1, 2024.