Scientists accuse Ireland and New Zealand of methane ‘accounting trick’

Climate researchers at the University of Oxford came up with GWP* about six years ago, as a better way for governments to set emissions targets for different greenhouse gases

Scientists accused politicians in New Zealand and Ireland of using an 'accounting trick' to back their sheep and cattle industries.

A group of 26 climate scientists from around the world have penned an open letter to New Zealand and Ireland criticising how the methane greenhouse gas is measured.

In Ireland's case, it may be a reaction to the programme for government 2025 commitment to "recognise the distinct characteristics of biogenic methane, as described by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and advocate for the accounting of this greenhouse gas to be re-classified at EU and international level".