{"id":37978,"date":"2026-06-25T07:29:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T05:29:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/?post_type=news&#038;p=37978"},"modified":"2026-06-25T07:52:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T05:52:40","slug":"guterres-calls-for-urgent-methane-cuts-to-slow-climate-crisis","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/news\/guterres-calls-for-urgent-methane-cuts-to-slow-climate-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Guterres calls for urgent methane cuts to slow climate crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Speaking at London Climate Action Week, Guterres warned that the world is on track to exceed the 1.5\u00b0C global warming limit, with the climate crisis accelerating faster than anticipated. \u201cThe climate crisis is accelerating, reducing methane is a fight we can win,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Methane, a potent greenhouse gas and the primary component of natural gas, is responsible for nearly one\u2011third of global warming and is classified by Guterres as a \u201csuper super\u2011pollutant.\u201d Unlike carbon dioxide, it breaks down more quickly, meaning rapid cuts could deliver immediate climate benefits. \u201cCutting methane is the single fastest brake we can pull on a warming planet,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Guterres stressed that existing technology can eliminate up to 70% of methane emissions from oil and gas operations at low or no net cost. Advances in satellite monitoring now enable real-time tracking of emissions, strengthening accountability.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>He outlined three key actions: detecting and fixing leaks, ensuring emissions are measurable and verifiable, and establishing global standards for low\u2011methane energy production. \u201cThe age of voluntary action is over,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>He called on major emitting countries, particularly G20 economies, to lead efforts, noting they account for most of the global reduction potential.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;UN\/ChannelAfrica&#8211;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":37979,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[78,26],"class_list":["post-37978","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-featured","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has urged governments and industry to act swiftly to reduce methane emissions, describing it as the fastest way to slow global warming.","published_date":"","news_description":"United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has urged governments and industry to act swiftly to reduce methane emissions, describing it as the fastest way to slow global warming.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/37978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/37978\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37980,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/37978\/revisions\/37980"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37979"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=37978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}