In a move that has UN officials reaching for superlatives (and possibly a celebratory cup of tea), Turkmenistan has started plugging the methane mega-leaks that have been spewing from its aging oil and gas facilities. The latest UN data shows the country has fixed eight leaks so far, a development hailed as a 'breakthrough' - though, as with most breakthroughs, there's a lot more work to be done.
Methane, also known as natural or fossil gas, is a greenhouse gas with a talent for warming the planet. It traps 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide and is responsible for about 25% of global heating today. The good news: stopping leaks is quick and cheap, and because methane breaks down faster than CO2, the climate impact is rapid. Some experts call it the climate 'emergency brake' - which makes you wonder why we've been driving with the parking brake on for so long.
Back in 2023, The Guardian revealed that Turkmenistan was the world champion of methane mega-leaks. Sources in the country say that scrutiny was the 'critical step' in getting the secretive and authoritarian government to engage with foreign partners. Because nothing says 'we're open to dialogue' like being named the worst offender on the planet.
A 'super-emitter' leak - where tonnes of methane escape per hour from a single valve or pipeline - heats the planet more than a million SUVs or an entire coal-fired power station. Turkmenistan has now stopped eight of these by repairing corroded pipes, faulty wells, and failing flares. The UN calls it an 'incredible first step,' but notes that much remains to be done. Understatement of the year, perhaps.
The UN Methane Alert and Response System (Mars) sent 192 alerts to Turkmenistan in the last year. The country had three of the six worst leaks detected globally by Mars in the last six months, and nine of the top 50. Turkmenistan responded to about 20% of alerts with on-the-ground info and plans to fix things. In contrast, the US received the second-highest number of alerts (138) but responded to none and fixed no leaks. Other nations that ignored alerts entirely: Iran, Russia, and China. They're not exactly winning the climate popularity contest.
The worst leak detected was in Mexico's offshore oil and gas industry, spewing 37 tonnes per hour - equivalent to the emissions of more than 7 million SUVs. Mexico responded to all 23 alerts but hasn't completed a fix yet. Progress, sort of.
Meghan Demeter, program manager for Mars (part of the UN Environment Programme), is encouraged. 'These mitigation cases are a proof point of what can be done with satellite data, especially in situations like Turkmenistan, where there are a lot of detections. We're seeing that the pipeline of satellite data to mitigation action works, and it can work quite quickly.' She adds, 'This is a breakthrough in terms of having real documented mitigation action. But it is not yet a breakthrough in the overall magnitude of emissions. Eight cases is an incredible first step, but there's also a lot more sources in Turkmenistan that need to be addressed.'
In March 2023, The Guardian revealed Turkmenistan had the most super-emitting methane leaks in the world. By May, we learned that the methane emissions from the nation's two main fossil fuel fields caused more global heating in 2022 than the entire carbon emissions of the UK - experts called it 'mind-boggling' and 'infuriating.' The findings caused a furore in Turkmenistan, prompting the government to engage with the UN, EU, and others. In December 2023, Turkmenistan joined the global methane pledge - two years after it launched. Better late than never?
Turkmenistan has huge gas reserves and is a major supplier to China. Previously, leaks were ignored due to the enormous volumes on tap. But in November 2024, the first leak was fixed after a faulty well was repaired. The most recent repair, in March, was to a corroded pipeline. Turkmenistan's ministry of foreign affairs and state companies Turkmenoil and Turkmengaz did not respond to requests for comment. Shocking.
The latest Mars data also shows Kazakhstan, another former Soviet republic with aging infrastructure, has stopped eight leaks. However, Kazakhstan has fewer leaks overall, with 38 alerts in the last year.
In total, Mars alerts have led to 43 leaks being sealed so far. Many were straightforward fixes, while others required more planning and funding. One major leak in Algeria had been running for almost 40 years due to a faulty flare. Flares burn unwanted methane, turning it into CO2, which is much less potent as a greenhouse gas - though still not great.
The previous US administration under Joe Biden engaged with Mars, and one small leak in New Mexico was fixed in 2024. But that engagement ended with Donald Trump's second presidency. Trump called climate change 'the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world' at the UN general assembly last year. Because why not double down on ignorance?
Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina have 100% response rates to Mars alerts, while Libya and Azerbaijan have high response rates. So there's hope.
Dan Grossman, vice-president at the Environmental Defense Fund, says, 'Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan are home to some of the world's most significant methane hotspots and their response to satellite alerts is much-needed good news in the global effort to minimise methane pollution.' He adds, 'Stemming methane emissions from oil and gas operations is the quickest and most cost-effective method to reduce climate pollution available today. Alerts only matter if they lead to action, and governments and industry must do a better job.'
UN Secretary General António Guterres has called for all countries to respond to 80% of alerts. Demeter says Mars is scaling up support, including knowledge building and technical assistance, and there are requests for funding for direct mitigation.
The Mars system uses AI to analyze data from more than a dozen satellites, detects potential leaks, and verifies them with two layers of analyst review. Verified leaks are notified to governments or companies. Responses are recorded if they report on-the-ground info and intention to plug the leak. If a leak is reported fixed, Mars monitors the site until data confirms emissions have ended.
So, progress is happening - slowly, but happening. As they say, every leak plugged is a step in the right direction. Now, if only the US, Iran, Russia, and China would get on board. But hey, we've got Turkmenistan, so who's laughing now?