Natural gas, also known as methane, is one of several “greenhouse gases” that trap heat radiation trying to leave the Earth. Molecule-for-molecule, methane warms our planet’s atmosphere about 25X more than carbon dioxide.
We have talked about food waste before. It is a big problem in this country: some 31% of our food supply is wasted, more than 130 billion pounds a year. Food waste makes up 21% of solid waste in municipal landfills, which means that it accounts for the bulk of landfill methane emissions. Methane is more than 20 times more effective as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, and landfills are a major source of it.
Coal is the most important energy source for the Chinese economy and in a number of other places around the world. It is still the largest source of electricity in the US. It is also one of the main reasons that greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase despite worldwide technological progress and the expansion of renewable energy. New coal plants are still planned in many places and such plants will emit carbon dioxide for decades.