In Chapter 8 of the edited book ‘Law in the EU’s Circular Energy System: Biofuel, Biowaste and Biogas‘, Maria Olczak and Andris Piebalgs discuss the ‘Methane emission in a circular economy‘, this being the last chapter of Part II.
Read the Abstract below:
‘This chapter provides an overview of the European Unions (EU) framework on the management of methane emissions from agriculture and waste sectors in line with the circular economy objectives. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) when released in the atmosphere, but it also could be used to provide energy services. The 2020 EU Strategy to reduce methane emissions set out an extensive framework addressing methane emissions from the key sources: agriculture, waste and energy. The strategy combines cross-sectoral actions (e.g. measurement and reporting of methane emissions by companies, biogas production) with sector-specific measures. While negotiations on a legislative framework for energy-related methane emissions are ongoing, the EU Commission has yet to revise the existing framework addressing two main sources of methane emissions in the EU: agriculture and waste. This chapter fills this gap with a critical analysis of the current EU policy framework, in particular of what has worked, what has not and missing elements. In the final part, a list of policy recommendations is provided.’
