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Task Force

A Task Force on Methane Management in Extractive Industries has been created and convened for its first meeting.

At its 24th session held on 18–20 November 2015, the Committee on Sustainable Energy
requested establishment of a task force under the Committee with representatives of the Groups of Expert on Gas and Coal Mine Methane and other stakeholders to undertake further work to assess baseline, benchmarking and scale of current methane emissions in those industries. (See para. 44 of the Report of the 24th session of the Committee).

Following this request, a Task Force on Methane Management in Extractive Industries was created. It is composed of a small group of highly qualified professionals. In its activities the Task Force draws from the work of the Group of Experts on Coal Mine Methane and the Task Force on Methane Emissions operating under the UNECE Group of Experts on Gas.

By compiling the results obtained by these two bodies with additional work done by UNECE external partners (see more in Cooperation), the Task Force works on developing coordinated, comprehensive and solutions-oriented set of best practices for methane management in extractive industries, with a focus on establishing a baseline, benchmarking and scale of current methane emissions in those industries. It aims at providing a clear guidance to policymakers, regulators and practitioners operating in the field in question (for more details please see Project Document).

The initial meeting of the Task Force took place at the Global Methane Forum that was held in Washington D.C., United States, on 28–30 March 2016. The meeting was attended by stakeholders representing all extractive energy sectors, and was devoted to the discussion on the programme’s desired structure and the Task Force's close term priorities (see Minutes of the 1st meeting).