Nord Stream gas leaks may be biggest ever, with warning of ‘large climate risk’

Colossal amount' of leaked methane, twice initial estimates, is equivalent to third of Denmark's annual CO₂ emissions or 1.3m cars

Scientists fear methane erupting from the burst Nord Stream pipelines into the Baltic Sea could be one of the worst natural gas leaks ever and pose significant climate risks.

Neither of the two breached Nord Stream pipelines, which run between Russia and Germany, was operational, but both contained natural gas. This mostly consists of methane - a greenhouse gas that is the biggest cause of climate heating after carbon dioxide.