Hyderabad: A landfill site in Hyderabad has been identified as one of the world’s biggest methane emitters.
As per a new study by the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), two major landfill sites in India are among the world’s biggest methane emitters.
These are the Jawahar Nagar landfill in Hyderabad and the Kanjurmarg landfill in Mumbai. They are listed among the top 25 most polluting waste sites globally.
Research findings
The research, conducted under UCLA’s STOP Methane Project, analysed waste facilities in 18 countries.
It found that these sites release methane at very high rates, ranging from 3.6 to 7.6 tonnes per hour. The emissions were detected using satellite data in 2025.
Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that traps heat much more effectively than carbon dioxide. It is about 86 times more harmful than CO2 and is responsible for over 45 percent of recent global warming.
Hyderabad landfill
The Hyderabad landfill at Jawahar Nagar was ranked fourth on the global list, with emissions of 5.9 tonnes of methane per hour. The Mumbai landfill at Kanjurmarg was placed at the 12th position, which releases 4.9 tonnes per hour.
The study highlighted that a source emitting 5 tonnes of methane every hour has a climate impact similar to one million SUVs.
Landfill in Argentina
At the top of the list is a landfill in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, which releases 7.6 tonnes of methane per hour. The study also noted that such high-emission landfill sites are present in both developed and developing countries.
Countries like Brazil and Chile have three such sites each, while India, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey have two each. Other countries with one site each include Algeria, Argentina, Greece, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United States.
