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> They apparently aren't any more ecological than natural gas because the process generates large amounts of methane

I thought the problem with fossil fuels is that we're taking the carbon out of the ground instead of the air.

Yes, that's a huge part of the problem. Burning things is less of a problem (carbondioxide-wise!) as long as you emit no extra carbon extracted from fossil sources.

If you turn CO2 in the air into methane in the air then you still have a problem, since methane is 40x as potent as a greenhouse gas.

Yes but on the other hand CO2 stays in the atmosphere hundreds(thousands?) Of years while methane breaks down in just few years, no?

No, because it breaks down into CO2.

Methane is 21x more potent than CO2 over a 100 year period, and 72x over a 20 year period. So, if you're concerned about what's happening now, that's the figure you need to consider.

You do not want to turn carbondioxide into methane to vent it into the air. You want the methane because it is a good fuel (natural gas consists mainly of methane).

The point is that even a small amount of accidentally released methane will destroy your co2 balance

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