Click to play videoDevon: Scientists in Britain say carbon dioxide from fossil fuels is number one on the list of gases contributing to global warming. And at number two is Methane from among other things, cows.
"Methane generation by livestock, in particular cattle and sheep, is a significant contributor to the global warming potential of agriculture,’ says Dr David Chadwick of the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research.
Chadwick is looking at whether feeding cows easier-on-the-tummy grasses can cut down on the amount of methane Britain’s 10 million cattle emit when they digest food.
Scientists say one cow pumps out hundreds of liters of methane every day. In other words, they pass more greenhouse gas than the typical SUV.
"We’re talking 80 percent plus of the methane which is coming from the front end – it’s being burped, being belched out by these animals,” says Chadwick.
So vets will be placing cows in fan-equipped tunnels, feeding them different kinds of grasses and hay. Then they have the unenviable task of "bottling wind" - and taking it to the lab where it’s measured for methane levels.
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