The UN Environment Programme and Bloomberg Philanthropies are expanding a program to boost response rates to major methane leaks detected by satellite. Currently only 13% of alerts get any follow up. The goal is 80% by 2030. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that causes about a third of current warming, but cuts can deliver quick climate benefits since it does not stay in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide. UNEP's Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) has issued over 5,000 alerts across 33 countries since 2023 and helped confirm 40 fixes in 10 countries. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said aggressive methane cuts could produce visible temperature relief within a generation. Many large leaks can be fixed cheaply, with some repairs costing little or nothing. One alert in Algeria led to repairs of a decades old leak with a climate benefit equal to taking 500,000 cars off the road each year.
