Many people may refer to natural gas as the cleanest of all fossil fuels we use. Perhaps that’s why it is responsible for producing a significant portion of the world’s electricity. However, it is a fossil fuel, and like all fossil fuels, it has a carbon footprint. So, the question is: how much of a carbon footprint does natural gas have? Is it small enough for us to overlook?
The fact is that natural gas has a carbon footprint that is up there with some of the biggest polluters. The carbon intensity per kWh of power generated from methane or natural gas is 490 grams of carbon dioxide. Sure, this is less CO2 than burning other fossil fuels like oil and coal, but it directly and significantly contributes to climate change.
It is worth considering that per kWh, methane makes up around 34% of North America’s energy consumption. This comes with a wide range of environmental implications. Experts stress that some of these ecological implications are already returning to haunt us.