Israel joined a US-EU pledge to cut 30% of global methane emissions by 2030 during the OECD climate conference in Paris on Wednesday.
The decision to join the pledge was made by Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg and Energy Minister Karin Elharrar after a meeting with US Special Presidental Envoy for Climate John Kerry.
The pledge, led by the US and the European Union, will be formally presented at November's UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, which will be attended by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett along with Zandberg and Elharrar.
"Israel has joined an imperative initiative which will create a global commitment to reduce greenhouse gases emissions," said Environmental Protection Minister Zandberg. "The window of opportunity to prevent the climate crisis is closing by the day," she added.
"This is another step in our stubborn battle to combat the climate crisis," noted Energy Minister Elharar. "I welcome the Environmental Protection Minister's willingness to address an issue that has been neglected until now."
Methane makes up 12% of Israel’s greenhouse gas emissions. The Environmental Protection Ministry plans to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from solid waste, a major source of methane emissions, by at least 47% by 2030.
Israel’s per capita methane emissions are still higher than the global average, with 1.3 tons being produced per capita, while the world average stands at 1.07 tons and the EU average stands at 0.89 tons.
Tzvi Joffre contributed to this report.
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