Fellow Scot Miller's Methane Emissions Research Gains World-Wide Attention

A Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship recipient’s study, published this week, shows emissions of the greenhouse gas methane from U.S. oil and gas extraction may be nearly five times higher than previously estimated.

Scot Miller, a Harvard University graduate student in atmospheric sciences, is lead author of the paper, which is garnering international press coverage. Other authors of the paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences include Miller’s advisor, Steven Wofsy, and researchers from seven other institutions, including Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).

Methane’s sources include natural gas production, cattle farming, landfills, coal mining and other human-caused and natural sources, a Harvard release says. The study measured methane present in the atmosphere, and used meteorological data and computer modeling to track it back to regional sources.

Total U.S. methane emissions appear to be 1.5 times higher than previous Environmental Protection Agency estimates and 1.7 times higher than estimated by the international Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research, the study shows. Results also indicate that emissions over the south central United States, where oil and gas production are centered, may be higher than estimated by a factor of 2.7, Miller says in the Harvard statement.

Besides coverage in the New York Times, USA Today and other American outlets, articles about the research have appeared in the China Daily, Sydney Morning Herald, and the United Kingdom’s Independent newspaper.

Miller is a fourth-year DOE CSGF recipient. He served practicums at LBNL in 2011 and 2012.

The Krell Institute manages the fellowship for the Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration.