Global Gas Flaring Satellite Survey Reveals Oil's Hidden Costs

The first recently unveiled global satellite survey of gas flaring — a process commonly used to dispose of natural gas freed during oil production — has shown what many have now suspected for years: it is an extremely wasteful, costly problem that has helped contribute to global warming. Conducted over a 12-year period spanning 1995-2006, the survey, commissioned by the World Bank's Global Gas Flaring Reduction partnership (GGFR), was carried out by a team of scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).