The Last Climate Frontier: Leveraging the Arctic Council to make Progress on Black Carbon and Methane

The report argues that the Arctic is warming twice as fast as lower latitudes, with black carbon and methane having a disproportionate impact. It proposes that the U.S., during its 2015-2017 Arctic Council Chairmanship, should champion best practices in the oil and gas sector, advocate for a heavy fuel oil ban in shipping, promote clean energy for residential heating, and implement strategies to curb open burning.

• Arctic warming is occurring at twice the rate of lower latitudes, with sea ice declining by an average of 91,600 km per year, roughly the area of Maine.
• Black carbon in the Arctic has a significantly higher impact on warming than mid-latitude sources, with some estimates suggesting it is 10 to 100 times greater.
• The United States and Russia are responsible for 90% of the black carbon emissions produced by Arctic nations, totaling 600 gigatons per year.
• In the oil and gas sector, methane emissions primarily result from venting and leakage, while black carbon emissions are largely caused by flaring and support operations.
• A ban on heavy fuel oil (HFO) in Arctic shipping could reduce black carbon emissions from the sector by up to 80%.
• Residential combustion is projected to remain or become the primary anthropogenic source of black carbon in the Arctic as other sectors decline.
• Open burning, including agricultural and forest fires, is the main source of black carbon in the Russian and Canadian Arctic.
• In Russia, it is estimated that up to 90% of forest fires are caused by escaped agricultural fires.

APA

Griffith, L. (n.d.). The Last Climate Frontier: Leveraging the Arctic Council to make Progress on Black Carbon and Methane. Clean Air Task Force. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/21094119/CATF_Pub_ArticCouncilReport.pdf

Chicago

Griffith, Lindsey. The Last Climate Frontier: Leveraging the Arctic Council to make Progress on Black Carbon and Methane. Clean Air Task Force, n.d. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/21094119/CATF_Pub_ArticCouncilReport.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Griffith |first1=Lindsey |title=The Last Climate Frontier: Leveraging the Arctic Council to make Progress on Black Carbon and Methane |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/21094119/CATF_Pub_ArticCouncilReport.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{griffithndlast, author = {Griffith, Lindsey}, title = {{The Last Climate Frontier: Leveraging the Arctic Council to make Progress on Black Carbon and Methane}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/21094119/CATF_Pub_ArticCouncilReport.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }