Methane emissions in India: Sub-regional and sectoral trends

This paper uses the 2006 IPCC Guidelines and latest country specific emission factors to estimate Indian methane emissions at sectoral and district level for the years 1990, 1995, 2005 and 2008. The estimates show that while methane emissions have increased steadily over past two decades, their share in India’s aggregate GHG emissions has declined from 31% in 1985 to 27% in 2008 mainly due to relatively higher growth CO2 emissions from the fossil fuels. The estimates for the year 2008 show that: i) agriculture sector, which employed two-thirds of India’s population and contributed 17% of GDP, accounted for 23% of India’s GHG emissions ii) 83% of country’s methane emissions are contributed by enteric fermentation, manure use and rice production, and iii) methane emissions from urban solid waste are steadily rising over the past two decades; their share in aggregate methane emissions has reached 8%. Resting on the disaggregated emissions estimates, the paper argues for using geographical and sectoral flexibilities to develop a roadmap for mitigation of methane emissions for India.

► Indian methane emissions have grown from 18.85 Tg in 1985 to 20.56 Tg in 2008. ► Enteric fermentation contributes 50–60% over the years. ► Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh are the hotspot methane emitting states of India. ► The mean and variability of methane emissions per district per year have increased over 1990–2008.