Power of the Beef!

At Cop26, the US President made much of his pledge to reduce atmospheric methane emissions. Methane is a more powerful 'greenhouse gas' than carbon dioxide, so it seemed a good idea at the time. Cattle burps and farts are a major source of methane. At their annual trade show, in Houston, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) are congratulating themselves on escaping 'relatively unscathed' from any Presidential attempt to curb methane release (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/mar/07/us-beef-industry-cop26-methane-gas). The NCBA note that ranchers and feedlots are being incentivized, raher than compelled, to cut their emissions. There is likely to be no real change in the net US emissions of methane. Methane from cattle can be added to that escaping from oil and gas drilling throughout North America. This just proves the real power of the hamburger in the US.