More than a dozen countries, including China, Russia, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are also expected to join the pledge.
The United States and the European Union have agreed to work to reduce global warming by about a third of the world’s population by the end of this decade and are forcing other economic powers to join in, according to documents obtained by Reuters.
Their alliance comes as Washington and Brussels seek to boost some of the key economic priorities for a climate change conference in Glasgow, Scotland, in November and could significantly affect energy, agriculture and methane emissions, Reuters said Tuesday.
Methane emissions, which cause climate change after carbon dioxide (CO2), are being closely monitored as governments seek ways to reduce global warming to 1.5C (2.7F), the goal of the Paris climate agreement.
To resume operations, the US and the EU later this week have agreed to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030, compared to 2020, according to a Global Methane Pledge report by Reuters.
“Long-term exposure to methane means that taking action now could reduce climate change,” the statement said.
Another document listed more than a dozen countries that the US and the EU have applied for as security. They include major producers such as China, Russia, India, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, as well as others including Norway, Qatar, Britain, New Zealand and South Africa.
The US State Department declined to comment and the European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The maximum heat possible
The agreement is likely to be unveiled on Friday at a major economic summit aimed at donating to the COP26 Glasgow climate change conference, Reuters reported.
Global leaders on their way to Glasgow are being pressured by scientists, environmentalists and volunteers to take action to solve environmental problems.
Methane can heat up more than carbon dioxide but it falls into the air faster, so a “strong, rapid and steady decrease” in methane emissions, in addition to lowering CO2 emissions, could lead to a rapid space crisis, a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last month .
Experts say that the oil industry could produce methane gas over a decade by repairing leaking pipes or gas stations, and much of that could be done at a lower cost.
However, satellite imagery and digital images in recent years have shown methane emissions from oil and gas sources in countries including the EU and the United States.
The US and the EU are both expected to pass legislation this year to ban methane emissions.
The US-EU pledge provides key sources for methane emissions, including old coal mines, agriculture and waste such as landfills, the document said.
The allied nations are committed to achieving the methane goal, “focusing on measures to achieve all the reduction of electricity and waste” and reducing agricultural production through “technical and incentives and partnerships with farmers,” it said.