Our society needs methane, and there is no way to stop using it. This is the lesson we have learned now that most European countries have done their best to find ways to reduce the use of Russian natural gas. However, we need to learn to use methane better. For example, we have to get more effective in preventing methane leaks. This is important for the economy and even more critical for the environment.
The war in Ukraine has shown us how vital methane, the main component of natural gas, is for our society. We must learn to use and produce methane more carefully.
It is both possible and very sensible to reduce the use of natural gas and all other fossil fuels for heating buildings, for example, by improving the insulation of buildings. However, the industry continues to need methane as a crucial raw material in the future. Methane is used to make medicines, fertilisers, plastic pipes for buildings and even car parts. We need to secure the supply of methane to the industry for the future – and we need to make it properly.
Methane can be obtained from sources other than natural gas. Methane is a key component of biogas, just as it is in natural gas. In addition, methane can be obtained from industrial side streams. Biogas production is now being increased rapidly for a very good reason: it is absurd to release a valuable raw material into the atmosphere from landfills and agriculture, for example. Industry, too, is now looking more closely at using its side streams.
