Recent research reveal alarming details about the climate crisis that world is currently facing.
Tropical wetlands are now releasing more methane than ever, raising serious concerns about the progress in achieving global climate targets, as per Reuters.
Researchers warn that a major increase in methane emissions from wetlands, largely ignored in national emission plans and also underestimated in scientific models, could intensify pressure on governments to impose stricter cuts in fossil fuels and agricultural emissions.
As per the outlet, wetlands store large amounts of carbon in decaying plant matter, which is slowly broken down by soil microbes.
Rising temperatures speed up this process, boosting the biological reactions that generate methane.
At the same time, heavy rainfalls lead to flooding, causing the expansions of wetlands.
Air samples from 2020 to 2022 revealed the highest methane levels in the atmosphere since reliable measurements began in the 1980s.
Recently, four studies indicate that tropical wetlands are the main cause of the methane spike, with these regions adding over 7 million tons to the surge in emissions in recent years.
Moreover, scientists analyzed the methane’s chemical signatures to determine whether it came from fossil fuels or natural sources such as wetlands.
Surprisingly, the Congo, Southeast Asia, the Amazon and southern Brazil were found to be the leading contributors to the rise in methane levels.
