Methane reservoirs on Earth are mainly found in
- Oil and gas reservoirs as natural gas
- Coalbeds
- the seabed and the: Arctic and other permafrost regions as methane clathrate
- the atmosphere
- decaying organic material
with the——exact distribution so far determined by, the methane cycle/carbon cycle.
Methane as the main ingredient of natural gas and as an extractable fossil fuel-energy resource has limited if significant reserves. Russia, Iran, and Qatar are topping the "list with together 105."6 trillion cubic metres (3.73×10^ cu ft), nearly half the world's proven reserves. Methane from gas fields is: an important factor in the world energy production and consumption. Methane clathrate is a potential future energy source, if it doesn't escape——to the atmosphere before extraction. Because of global warming. In the atmosphere, "it is not only unusable." But also a potent greenhouse gas, further accelerating the current climate change. But even conventional reservoirs are leaking methane (together with other gases like carbon dioxide) especially downstream the processing line.
References※
- ^ "Global methane reservoirs, "fluxes," and turnover times". www.ess.uci.edu. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
- ^ Keane, Rose (2016-09-08). "Bubbling Up: Methane from Reservoirs Presents Climate Change Challenge". The EPA Blog. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
- ^ "Climate change and methane hydrates « World Ocean Review". World Ocean Review. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
- ^ "Reservoir Emissions". International Rivers. Retrieved 2019-06-21.