Accelerated Methane Reduction

Designing a future interdisciplinary and shared research agenda to understand the role of methane reduction in the energy transition

Designing a future interdisciplinary and shared research agenda to understand the role of methane reduction in the energy transition

As the world confronts an energy transition, the global energy system is being re-imagined and the role of methane reduction in that transition is not entirely clear. Governments are pursuing increasingly ambitious initiatives to reduce methane emissions and diversify their energy systems. At the same time, the world is facing significant energy demand growth from emerging and developing economies. The dual pressures of reducing their carbon footprint, while also providing the necessary resources to fuel energy growth creates another layer of complexity for the oil and gas industry.

Mines and the world

The Payne Institute extends to public policy Mines’ conviction that energy and the environment must– and can – fruitfully coexist. We are in an enviable position to tap into a deep well of on-campus and alumni leaders in industry and environmental groups around the world. We foster collaboration with a focus on problem-solving rather than furthering entrenched agendas.

COLORADO

Colorado has been at the forefront of establishing regulations for the oil and gas industry and working in a coherent inclusive manner between the industry and other stakeholders. That form of broad engagement based on science should continue. It will serve to both evolve the discussion in the state and at the local level, but also serve as a lodestar for the national and global discussion.

For more information about the Accelerated Methane Reduction Initiative at the Payne Institute for Public Policy, please contact our Deputy Director, Gregory Clough, at gclough@mines.edu.

NEWS

VIIRS Nightfire Super-Resolution Method for Multiyear Cataloging of Natural Gas Flaring Sites: 2012-2025 1/16/2026

VIIRS Nightfire Super-Resolution Method for Multiyear Cataloging of Natural Gas Flaring Sites: 2012-2025

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Mikhail Zhizhin, Christopher D. Elvidge, Tilottama Ghosh, Gregory Gleason, and Director Morgan Bazilian present a new method for mapping global gas flaring using a multiyear spatio-temporal database of VIIRS Nightfire (VNF) nighttime infrared detections from the Suomi NPP, NOAA-20, and NOAA-21 satellites. The method is designed to resolve closely spaced industrial combustion sources and to produce a stable, physically meaningful flare catalog suitable for long-term monitoring and emissions analysis.   January 16, 2026.

A New Chance for Cash Transfers from Oil Revenues? 1/15/2026

A New Chance for Cash Transfers from Oil Revenues?

Payne Institute Fellow Noé van Hulst writes about how after the US removal of President Maduro in Venezuela, how can the US control oil revenues so that part of the oil revenues really benefit the citizens of Venezuela, given that Venezuela is one of the most corrupt regimes in the world? Direct cash transfers to citizens could, in my view, be worth exploring as an avenue, following the example of Alaska and Guyana.  January 15, 2026.

Drilling Into The Details Of Venezuela’s Oil 1/12/2026

Drilling Into The Details Of Venezuela’s Oil

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jennifer Miskimins is featured on this podcast discussing President Trump’s moves to take control of Venezuela’s oil production—including the seizure of incoming and outgoing oil tankers—there’s been a lot of talk about the country’s deep reserves of crude. But not all oil is the same, and getting the Venezuelan reserves out of the ground might be neither cheap nor simple.  January 12, 2026.

Scale Matters: Even Climate Hawks Are Embracing Nuclear Power 12/22/25

Scale Matters: Even Climate Hawks Are Embracing Nuclear Power

Payne Institute Program Manager Simon Lomax writes about how nuclear energy is the No. 1 source of carbon-free electricity in the US, producing more than wind turbines and solar panels combined.  Even so, support for nuclear has been soft among so-called climate hawks — the public officials and thought leaders who rank global warming as one of the top issues facing the US and the world. December 22, 2025.

Colorado School of Mines professor and students work on creating a new type of concrete 12/10/2025

Colorado School of Mines professor and students work on creating a new type of concrete

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Lori Tunstall contributed to this article about how an innovative green concrete is taking shape at Colorado School of Mines, where researchers are replacing cement with biochar, testing if there is a way to reduce landfill waste while also making concrete better.  December 10, 2025.

Google just backed carbon capture tech for data center energy providers. Will other tech giants follow? 12/4/2025

Google just backed carbon capture tech for data center energy providers. Will other tech giants follow?

Payne Institute Low Carbon Technologies Program Manager Anna Littlefield, Accelerated Methane Reduction Director Simon Lomax, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the fast-growing electricity demands of data centers could be a game-changer for carbon capture technology in the power sector.  December 4, 2025.

Scaling carbon capture and storage (CCS) to gigaton capacity: A multi-dimensional and critical review 12/2/2025

Scaling carbon capture and storage (CCS) to gigaton capacity: A multi-dimensional and critical review

Benjamin Mitterrutzner, Benjamin K. Sovacool, Brage Rugstad Knudsen, Payne Institute Director Morgan D. Bazilian, Jinsoo Kim, Simon Roussanaly, Asgeir Tomasgard, and Fellow Steven Griffiths provide a comprehensive review of CCS technologies, from capture to storage, across key sectors, and maps the evolution of global CCS deployment; looking at cost-effective mitigation and policy, regulatory and market actions needed. December 2, 2025.

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