The Queensland Climate Council says the Federal Government has updated the methodology for counting cattle and their methane emissions but still guesses at the fugitive methane emissions from coal mines.  

The Climate Council said the Australian Bureau of Statistics has reported that it has underestimated the number of cows by about 20 per cent, which also increases Australia’s methane emissions from cattle by 20 per cent.

It is reported that researchers have suggested that there could be as many as ten million unreported cattle in Australia.

It is estimated there were 27.8 million beef cattle across the country in 2023, which is a significant increase on previous years.

There have been suggestions that these findings may have significant implications for the red meat industry’s greenhouse gas reporting because the volume of its annual methane emissions are drawn from ABS data on herd size.

The Climate Council asserts that expert analysis of increasingly sophisticated satellite data indicates that fugitive methane emissions from coal mining have been grossly underestimated by 80 per cent.

“Farmers are bearing the brunt of climate change through extreme weather while also facing the financial burden of implementing livestock feed changes to curb cow burps,” Coal and Gas Campaigner at Queensland Conservation Council, Ben Pennings said.

“In stark contrast, coal companies are allowed to guess their methane emissions and rake in unprecedented profits while neglecting easily implementable mitigation practices such as proper equipment maintenance and operational improvements,” he said.

“Despite signing the Global Methane Pledge in 2022, the Australian Government has no plan to hold fossil fuel corporations accountable.

“Coal corporations lie about fugitive methane emissions because their rules are based on guessing, not measuring.

“Farmers grappling with the whims of market volatility and erratic weather patterns are burdened with mitigating emissions from livestock while coal companies get a free ride.

“The Federal Government is deliberating over whether to adopt recommendations from the Climate Change Authority that would ensure we accurately measure methane.

“These would be from tried and tested technologies that are available at low costs for fossil fuel corporations to accurately measure their emissions.

“It’s time Minister Bowen made coal companies tell the truth and provide space for agriculture, the back-bone of our society, to transition.

“Coal mustn’t trump agriculture,” Mr Pennings said.

“Let’s champion policies that demand accountability from all sectors to achieve a net zero target.” 

This article appeared in  On Our Selection News, 4 July 2024