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International Methane Emissions Observatory

fossil fuel industry is responsible for one-third of anthropogenic methane emissions and is the sector with the highest potential for fast reductions that could slow the rate of global warming as efforts continue to decarbonize the energy system through cleaner forms of energy. To date action by companies and governments on fossil fuel methane emissions has been limited and uncoordinated at the global level. UNEP will establish an International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) that accelerates reductions in fossil fuel methane emissions globally. IMEO will be the nucleus of a multi-sector partnership, including companies, research institutions, governments, and civil society partners. Hosted within UNEP, IMEO will benefit from UNEP’s experience on methane, track record of collaborating with diverse partners on complex environmental issues, global reach, and institutional legitimacy. IMEO will build upon the success and experience of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition’s Mineral Methane Initiative, which seeks to achieve ambitious methane emissions reductions of 45% by 2025 and 60-75% by 2030. Furthermore, it will contribute to Sustainable Development Goal #13 on Climate Action: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning. Specifically, IMEO will increase the number of countries with Nationally Determined Contributions and Long-term Strategies under the Paris Agreement. To achieve this objective, IMEO will aggregate and analyse multiple methane emissions data streams, including company reporting, national inventories reported to the Climate Change secretariat, direct measurements, and satellite observations, and reconcile inconsistencies between reported and observed emissions levels. By assisting industry and governments in addressing uncertainty related to reported emissions, IMEO will improve the consistency and credibility of methane emissions data and accelerate mitigation actions based on sound science. Additionally, IMEO will commission new scientific measurement studies, provide feedback to companies on the quality of their data and the ambition of their targets, and engage governments on the findings from the data analysis. The Observatory will also be a platform for dialogue between industry, governments, research institutions, and civil society organizations conducting research on fossil fuel operations, and will engage with countries to implement methane mitigation projects by acting as a resource for capacity building, best practice sharing and emissions measurement support.