Alberta says methane emissions down 62 per cent

Alberta says its methane emissions are down 62 per cent, putting the province well ahead of its 2035 goal of a 75 per cent cut, according to a government news release issued ahead of COP31.

The province said updated data, based on what it called more accurate methods and newer measurement technology, also show it hit its original 45 per cent reduction target in 2021, four years before the 2025 deadline. Environment Minister Grant Hunter was scheduled to present the numbers Nov. 12 at Methane Day at the Canadian Pavilion in Antalya, Turkey.

The figures are the province’s own and rest on a revised methodology, so they have not been independently checked. The release did not say how much of the improvement comes from the change in measurement versus actual cuts, and it did not give the baseline year in the 62 per cent figure. The 2035 goal is measured against 2014 levels.

The government said it has put about $172 million into methane-reduction technology since 2019, and that its Emission Offset System has helped industry install more than 61,000 methane-reducing devices.

The number matters for Albertans because it underpins the provincial government’s case that it can regulate oil and gas methane itself. The November 2025 Canada-Alberta energy agreement committed both governments to pursue what it calls regulatory equivalency, and a March 2026 agreement-in-principle set the 75 per cent target. We reported on that agreement-in-principle in March.

The announcement comes as Ottawa’s own methane rules are set to take effect in 2028, as we reported when the United States moved to ease its methane regulations. Canada’s climate record is also under scrutiny at the summit, where Carney and other absent leaders were handed a “fossil of the day” award.

The Alberta release is available on the provincial government’s website.

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