Emissions from oil and gas production are significantly underreported, a study from the Climate TRACE coalition finds.

Climate TRACE collected data from more than 70,000 sources worldwide, including power plants, steel mills, urban road networks, and oil and gas fields, and found that 25 of the 50 largest sources of emissions are oil and gas production fields and their associated facilities and, to that end, emissions are significantly underreported. Released this week during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt, the study found that the top 500 sources of emissions represented less than 1 percent of the total Climate TRACE inventory but accounted for 14 percent of global emissions for 2021—more than the annual emissions of the United States.

The study was sourced independently and is based primarily on direct observations of activity rather than self-reported data, providing the detail and timeliness needed to inform and accelerate decarbonization decisions worldwide. As of the end of October, no nation had submitted a complete accounting of its emissions for 2021 to the UNFCCC, and 52 countries have not submitted any emissions inventories covering the past 10 years. 

“The climate crisis can, at times, feel like an intractable challenge—in large part because we’ve had a limited understanding of precisely where emissions are coming from,” said Al Gore, former U.S. vice president and a founding member of Climate TRACE. “This level of granularity means that we finally have emissions data that enable us to act decisively. It also means we can prioritize efforts to achieve the deep cuts in greenhouse gas pollution we need to prevent the most catastrophic impacts of the climate crisis.” 

(Photo credit: Getty Images/querbeet)