It's a Gaz, Gaz, Gaz!

Extracting 'natural gas' releases methane. Burning it adds to carbon dioxide emissions. In the atmosphere, both methane and carbon dioxide are 'greenhouse gases', increasing planetary heating/ climate change. You might expect people would be doing all they can to leave 'natural gas'(and other hydrocarbons) in the rocks. Obviously, energy security is currently a serious problem. 'Natural gas' supplies have also been 'weaponised' by regimes with no interest in a stable planet. Two recent developments illustrate our quandry. Gazprom (Russia is the largest producer of 'natural gas') and the National Iranian Oil Company (Iran has the second highest reserves of the stuff) have signed a $40bn deal (https://www.euronews.com/2022/07/20/iran-russia-oil), to develop Iran's oil and gas fields. The Iranians will be able to use Russian technologies, to boost extraction of 'natural gas'. Between them, Russia and Iran will largely control world gas supplies (a sort of 'Ogas' to OPEC). The European Union (EU) has also signed a deal with Azerbaijan, to bring Caspian Sea gas to Europe (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/19/human-rights-groups-criticise-eus-azerbaijan-gas-deal). That deal is an attempt to help wean some EU members (e.g. Germany and Italy), off their dependence on Russian gas. The deal has been critised by some Human Rights groups, unhappy about freedoms in Azerbaijan. The deal must also be criticised, however, as simply replacing one dependence by another. We really need to stop using 'natural gas' from any source as quickly as possible. If gas is not burned, it will neither add to 'greenhouse gas' emissions nor be a potent economic weapon.