One of the most notable climate change provisions in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act is the first U.S. federal tax on a greenhouse gas (GHG). That the fee targets methane (CH4), rather than carbon dioxide (CO2), emissions is indicative of the urgency the scientific community has placed on reducing this short-lived but powerful gas.
Desiree Plata is an MIT associate professor of civil and environmental engineering and the director of the Plata Lab. Her research focuses on developing technologies and strategies for environmental sustainability, with a special focus on methane emissions.