Page 25 - Beef-Week-2022

Stock Journal Beef Week | 2022
Think ‘whole picture’ in race to

mitigate methane

By SHAN GOODWIN in that it fails to account for the
actual warming impact of methane,

O much is awed about the which is far more short-lived in the
way methane from cattle has atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
Sbeen blamed for signi cant “Recently the IPCC
climate change, most of it (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
stemming from a lack of looking at Change) reported that if you have
the whole picture. a constant source of methane -
The beef industry has been let’s say a stable feedlot industry
warned not to make the same - then using GWP100 overblows
mistake as it rushes to bring in the warming effect of that sector
mitigation strategies. by a factor of three to four,” Dr
One of the world’s leading
experts on quantifying and Mitloehner said.
mitigating greenhouse gas “There is a new matrix, GPW
emissions, United States scientist HOLISTIC THINKING: Dr Frank Mitloehner, a star, that does a much better job
Dr Frank Mitloehner, says holistic global expert on quantifying and mitigating of characterising the impact of
thinking is critical in beef’s chase greenhouse gas emissions. methane on warming.
for carbon neutrality. “If you have constant cattle
Dr Mitloehner, based at the The traditional approach to numbers and constant methane
Department of Animal Science emissions accounting has been the emissions, you are not getting
at UC Davis, said methane from additional warming. If, at the same
cattle was not only emitted, it was Global Warming Potential 100 method, time, you are reducing methane
also destroyed relatively quickly known as GWP100, which converts with mitigation programs, you pull
and that meant it’s warming gases like methane and nitrous oxide carbon out of the air, the same way
impact should be measured to carbon dioxide equivalents. planting trees does. That makes
differently to that of carbon However, the metric is being you a solution in our ght against

dioxide. increasingly recognised as awed climate change.”

REDWOOD SA Beef Week Field Day

Friday 4 February 2022
th
RANGE Auburn, Clare Valley, S.A.

SPECKLE PARK Displaying Speckle Park stud cows and calves,
and F1 SPxAngus cows.
VR4729112

Enquiries welcome: Mick Lines 0400 361 734 Krystal Lines 0439 804 364 mklines@bigpond.com

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