The Immense Lie That Oil Companies Are Telling You

Oil companies have been grossly underreporting the fact that they contribute to about 50% of greenhouse gas emissions globally.

By Tiffany Velasquez | Published

Oil companies are underreporting their emissions. This underreporting is causing massive damage to the fight against climate change. Nearly half of all greenhouse gas emissions come from the oil and gas industry. 

As experts look through reports from various oil companies around the world, they are finding huge gaps and numbers that simply do not add up. One company in Saudi Arabia has completely left off reports from one of its oil refineries, according to The Guardian. The oil and gas companies are turning out to be the absolute worst at reporting their emissions correctly. 

This underreporting is not a simple mistake. It may be safe to say that gas and oil companies are purposely manipulating the numbers and in some cases completely omitting numbers simply for their gain. These blatant lies and misrepresentations of the greenhouse gas that are being emitted from this industry is a huge problem that is causing further damage to our planet and fueled by greed. 

Greenhouse gas emissions from the gas and oil industries are around 5,200 tonnes. This is a unit of measurement that most people don’t even understand but it is roughly 50% of the greenhouse gas emissions that are currently being emitted into our atmosphere. The source of these emissions comes from various sources within the industry. 

The collection, processing, collection, transmissions, and, accidental emissions from leaks in valves and even emissions on purpose for the sake of “safety are all sources of the gases that are being pumped into our atmosphere from the oil and gas industry. It is hard to say just how much gas is being produced in the gas and oil industry for a number of reasons. The false reporting is obviously unreliable and inaccurate. 

oil companies reserves

Data is collected from satellites, artificial intelligence, and other sources in an attempt to find out just how much gas is being produced by the gas and oil industry. Despite efforts to gather this data, it is still hard to say with 100% certainty. Experts and those who are working to fight climate change are finding numbers that do add though. 

Climate Trace is a company working to accurately track greenhouse gas emissions from the gas and oil industry. The company uses satellites and other sensing technologies to track and monitor greenhouse gas emission activity. This company has provided data to fill in the gaps where oil companies are leaving out data.

Accurate reporting of greenhouse gas emissions is vital in the fight against climate change. Even though there is a push for more electric vehicles, the fact remains that the oil industry is a vital part of our economy and is and necessary to how the world currently operates. There is a way to go about things responsibly. 

The first thing is to accurately report numbers regarding the emissions that are being produced. Hiding, falsifying, and omitting numbers does nothing but create more tension and animosity against the industry. This false reporting is only causing more harm to the trust between people and more harm to our Earth.