Alberta's methane emissions

Alberta’s methane emissions are down 52%

Alberta’s approach works

Alberta’s approach to reducing methane emissions is a path to proven success:

Saved industry over $600 million

Praised as a global gold-standard

Won national and international awards

Benefits of reducing methane emissions

Methane is one of the strongest greenhouse gases on earth. It is 28 times more effective than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Reducing methane emissions has a quicker impact on addressing global emissions, while reducing carbon dioxide contributes to longer-term emissions reduction goals.

Learn more about how we monitor and manage methane emissions.

Improves air quality and reduces health risks by lowering ground-level ozone.

Saves costs and makes industry more efficient.

Grows the economy by creating jobs in energy efficiency and emissions control.

Protects the environment by preserving ecosystems and biodiversity.

A decades-long success story

Alberta has led methane emission reductions in the oil and gas sector for more than 30 years.

Flaring requirements

Alberta is the first oil and gas producing jurisdiction to put requirements on emissions from flaring, spurring technological development and setting a precedent for the world.

1990s
Alberta’s methane expertise goes global

Alberta's methane emissions reduction expertise is used to help calibrate and improve the accuracy of international methane monitoring satellites.

2000s
Alberta receives national recognition

The Clean Air Strategic Alliance’s flaring and venting reduction project receives the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Pollution Prevention Award.

2005
Industry reduces costs and emissions

Alberta establishes the Enhanced Oil Recovery Offset Protocol, giving oil and gas companies clear steps to measure methane emissions while saving money and maintaining production – a balance not commonly achieved in other jurisdictions.

2007
Industry turns emissions into revenue

For the first time, Alberta’s oil and gas operators have a financial incentive to capture and use methane that would otherwise be released into the air thanks to Alberta’s new Engine Fuel Management and Vent Gas Reduction, Instrument Gas to Instrument Air Conversions and Pneumatic Devices offset protocols.

2009
Incentives for emissions reductions

Alberta rewards companies that capture emissions from industrial processes or power plants and store it underground and paves the way for other jurisdictions through its new CO2 Capture and Permanent Geological Sequestration Offset Protocol.

2015
Alberta sets a global standard

Alberta’s flaring standards are adopted as a model in Canada and internationally, and receive an Excellence Award from the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership.

2015
Methane emissions reduction target

Alberta sets Canada’s first methane emissions reduction target for the oil and gas sector, with a goal to reduce methane emissions by 45% below 2014 levels by 2025.

2015
Milestone methane agreement reached

Alberta ensures the province remains in charge of regulating methane emissions instead of the federal government.

2020
Alberta’s methane approach featured as global best practice

Alberta’s methane emissions reduction framework is featured as a global best practice in the Global Methane Initiative’s Case Study Library.

2022
Methane reduction target achieved early

Alberta meets its methane emissions reduction target 3 years early.

2022
Methane progress report

Alberta releases a provincial report about meeting its methane emissions reduction goal and its trajectory to exceed it.

2023
Methane emissions fall 52%

Alberta cuts its methane emissions from the oil and gas sector in half, showing how to reduce emissions and keep powering the world.

2023
Memorandum of understanding (MOU)

Alberta and Colorado sign an MOU to align regulation, enhance collaboration and increase information sharing on best practices in reducing methane emissions.

2024

Blueprint for success

Ongoing investment
We’ve invested approximately $129 million into technology testing centres, retrofitting equipment and developing new industrial methane technologies since 2019. This includes:
- $78 million into programs that reduce methane emissions, including $15 million to test new technologies through the NGIF Emissions Testing Centre
- $22 million from the TIER fund to develop methane technologies through Emissions Reduction Alberta
- $29 million from the TIER fund for 2 programs led by Emissions Reduction Alberta and the NGIF Accelerator that will help energy companies lower methane emissions and develop new technologies needed to keep reducing emissions in the future
Strong regulations
Alberta is leading the way with some of North America’s strictest and strongest methane rules. While other jurisdictions focus mainly on leak detection and repair, Alberta goes further with mandatory measurement and reporting, clear timelines and equipment-specific emission thresholds:
- Directive 060 regulates emissions from upstream oil and gas operations
- Directive 017
- The Methane Emissions Reduction Regulation sets clear limits and timelines
Market-based incentives
Alberta’s companies are rewarded for going beyond regulations through emission offsets. These are earned by:
- upgrading equipment to reduce venting
- using alternative power sources to reduce venting
- using advanced monitoring and detection technologies
- participating in pilot projects that demonstrate real reductions
Science-based reporting
On top of having one of the best measurement, monitoring and verification systems in the world, Alberta's methane emissions reporting is highly accurate, and the province keeps improving. While the federal government uses an experimental, top-down method that lacks international validation to report methane emissions, Alberta uses a scientifically proven, bottom-up approach to report methane emissions that is based on:
- engineering estimates
- emission factors
- annual surveys
- validated measurement methods
New experimental tools like aircraft and satellite sensors are also being explored, while Alberta continues to call on the federal government to conduct more research and validation into this measurement approach, be more transparent in its emissions reporting, and to collaborate with the provinces before adopting new national standards that can skew emissions inventories and hurt the competitiveness of Canada's energy sector.
A model for the world

Alberta’s smart policy, market tools and innovation are proof that reducing emissions while growing production is achievable. As global focus shifts to methane, Alberta offers a roadmap for success.