Developing regional-scale measurement of fugitive and vented methane from oil and gas, and increasing comparability of Canadian inventory estimates

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Across Canada, methane emissions of oil and gas production sites are 1.5 to 2 times greater than in the federal methane inventory. New national and provincial regulations force industry to measure and mitigate methane, and regulators need to ensure compliance. This proposal focuses on reliably measuring regional methane emissions at sites of oil and gas production in Canada. We will choose several oil and gas producing regions for the study, and conduct field campaigns to build a detailed "bottom-up" inventory. We will also work "top down" using a forecasting model called WRF, into which we will assimilate spatio-temporal measurements of various types from truck-mounted sensors, stationary sensors, and satellites. The top-down approach will create regional modelling and emission estimates that we will compare against the bottom-up measurements. Our project partners each bring unique and desired methane skills and sensing competencies to the project. This project will fill critical national and international knowledge gaps that are essential for reducing greenhouse gases (GHG). By making methane leak detection and regulatory oversight more accurate, affordable, and easier, Canada and other countries can more ambitiously reduce GHGs.