Abstract of Presentation:

Methane is the second-most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas after
carbon dioxide. Methane’s levels in the atmosphere are higher than at any time in the past
800,000 years, and they have almost tripled since the industrial revolution. The
measurements I took in the 1970s as a graduate student were among the first to observe
methane’s year-on-year increases, showing that further and systematic global monitoring
was required. My group has now collected more than 40 years of methane measurements,
which represents the longest observational record of global atmospheric methane levels.
Over this time my group has also investigated major sources of methane, including dairies,
oil and gas, and landfills. Together with colleagues, we estimated methane emissions from
the Aliso Canyon natural gas blowout in Los Angeles, and found that, at its peak, the
blowout effectively doubled the methane release rate from the entire Los Angeles basin. My
group has also assessed methane emissions from landfills before and after the
implementation of mitigation strategies. We found that daily methane emissions decreased
by a factor of two at a landfill in Louisiana after the mitigation strategies were
implemented. This research demonstrated the effectiveness of methane reduction
measures in landfills once emission hotspots were located. In this presentation I will
discuss my group’s pioneering methane research since the 1970s, including insights into
straightforward strategies to improve landfill infrastructure to reduce methane emissions
to the atmosphere.

About Dr. Don Blake:

Professor Blake brings state-of-the-art techniques for measuring trace gases in air and in human breath to the ORU.  Atmospheric composition is changing at an unprecedented rate. His research group identifies and quantifies atmospheric gases in (a) remote locations throughout the Pacific region from Alaska to New Zealand: (b) highly polluted cities throughout the world; and (c) areas with special conditions, such as burning forests and/or agricultural wastes, or the marine boundary layer in oceanic locations with high biological emissions. Whole air samples are collected on land, ships, and aircraft and are returned to his  laboratory for analysis.