Satellites Expose Landfill Methane as COP31 Opens in Türkiye: Why Garbage Dumps Matter for Climate
Ahead of COP31, the UN climate summit held in Antalya, Türkiye from 9 to 20 November 2026, satellite data showed very large methane leaks from garbage dumps (landfills) in the host country.
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) used satellite data from the Carbon Mapper portal to list Türkiye's 10 highest-emitting landfill sites. The worst was the Silivri site near Istanbul. Others were spread from İzmir to Ankara and Antalya.
The same research project identified 25 of the world's largest methane-emitting landfills across 18 countries, using 2025 satellite data.
Methane is the second-biggest cause of global warming after carbon dioxide (CO₂). Over its first 20 years in the air, it traps more than 80 times as much heat as the same amount of CO₂. So cutting methane is one of the fastest ways to slow warming.
Türkiye holds the COP31 presidency, and its President-designate has called methane cuts a top priority. Australia leads the negotiations as "President of Negotiations" under a special hosting deal.
Solid Waste Management Rules, 2026
The Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2026 are India's main rules for how household, market and office garbage must be collected, separated, treated and disposed of. They were made by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. They came into force on 1 April 2026 and replaced the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. Their main idea is simple: separate waste at home, recover as much as possible, and send only useless leftover waste to landfills.
The satellite findings show what happens when mixed wet waste rots in large dumps: huge plumes of methane. India's SWM Rules, 2026 attack the same problem at the source, by forcing wet waste to be composted or turned into biogas and by allowing only inert waste into landfills. The news is a reminder that waste is not only a cleanliness issue but also a climate issue.
Global Methane Pledge (2021)
The Global Methane Pledge is a voluntary promise by countries to cut human-caused methane emissions by at least 30% from 2020 levels by 2030. It was launched at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021, led by the United States and the European Union. It does not set targets for each country; members work together towards the collective goal. Cutting methane matters because methane is short-lived but very powerful, so cuts show results on warming within decades.
Landfills fall in the waste sector, which is about a fifth of human-caused methane. Satellite tools now let anyone see which dumps are leaking the most. This puts pressure on COP31's host, which has called methane cuts a priority, and on every country with large open dumps.
- COP31: Antalya, Türkiye, 9 to 20 November 2026; Türkiye holds the presidency, Australia is President of Negotiations
- UCLA research using Carbon Mapper data: Türkiye's 10 highest-emitting landfills listed; the worst is Silivri near Istanbul
- Global list: 25 of the world's largest methane-emitting landfills across 18 countries (2025 satellite data)
- Methane: more than 80 times the warming power of CO₂ over 20 years
- Landfill gas: roughly 50% methane and 50% CO₂
- Waste sector: about 20% of human-caused methane (UNEP Global Methane Assessment, 2021)
- Global Methane Pledge: cut methane at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030; launched at COP26 (2021); India not a member
- India's SWM Rules, 2026: in force from 1 April 2026; four-stream segregation