Olivier Boucher et al 2009 Environ. Res. Lett. 4 044007 doi:10.1088/1748-9326/4/4/044007
Olivier Boucher1, Pierre Friedlingstein2,3, Bill Collins1 and Keith P Shine4
Show affiliationsMethane is the second most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas in the atmosphere next to carbon dioxide. Its global warming potential (GWP) for a time horizon of 100 years is 25, which makes it an attractive target for climate mitigation policies. Although the methane GWP traditionally includes the methane indirect effects on the concentrations of ozone and stratospheric water vapour, it does not take into account the production of carbon dioxide from methane oxidation. We argue here that this CO2-induced effect should be included for fossil sources of methane, which results in slightly larger GWP values for all time horizons. If the global temperature change potential is used as an alternative climate metric, then the impact of the CO2-induced effect is proportionally much larger. We also discuss what the correction term should be for methane from anthropogenic biogenic sources.
92.70.Mn Impacts of global change; global warming
92.60.hd Stratospheric composition and chemistry
92.60.Sz Air quality and air pollution
Issue 4 (October-December 2009)
Received 3 July 2009, accepted for publication 12 October 2009
Published 21 October 2009
Olivier Boucher et al 2009 Environ. Res. Lett. 4 044007
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