Concentration of carbon dioxide and methane in atmosphere over Russia in 2022 reaches record levels - Roshydromet

MOSCOW. Aug 23 (Interfax) - The Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (Roshydromet) recorded the maximum concentration of CO2 (carbon dioxide), as well as a record increase in the concentration of CH4 (methane) in the Russian atmosphere over the past year, the "Overview of the Condition and Pollution of the environment in the Russian Federation for 2022," published on the agency's website, said.

The average annual value of CO2 concentrations at Russian Arctic measuring stations Teriberka and Tiksi exceeded 421 million units, and the maximum figure was close to 430 million units, which is a record for the entire history of observations, the agency said. In 2022, growth in carbon dioxide concentration was higher than the average global rate for the previous 11 years (2.5 million units per year), increasing to 3-3.4 million units.

The average annual concentration of methane in Russia in 2022 also reached record levels, approaching 2.02 trillion units. Meanwhile, the trend in methane concentration is global, Roshydromet said. According to the Bulletin of the World Meteorological Organization, in 2020 and 2021, the increase in methane concentration was a record for the entire observation period since the early 1980s. "Methane enters the atmosphere from both anthropogenic and natural sources, while an increase in natural emissions can be caused by climate warming. Which of these is responsible for the change in the methane concentration growth rate has not yet been established," the Roshydromet report says.