Hydrogen’s climate benefits in doubt
Research by Environmental Defense Fund warns that hydrogen leakage could contribute to short-term global warming potential
Hydrogen’s role in enabling countries to reach net-zero targets may be complicated by its indirect, short-term global warming potential, suggests a recent study by environmental non-profit the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). The study, titled ‘Climate consequences of hydrogen emissions’ and published in peer-reviewed journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, notes that hydrogen’s warming impact is “overlooked and underestimated”, as the indirect warming effects of the gas may last only a couple of decades—whereas standard methods for measuring climate impacts tend to consider warming potential in the long term. “When we started looking into [hydrogen], we realised that, even though there
Also in this section
9 March 2026
Hydrogen has not stalled in the UK because the technology does not work. The problem is that the system around it does not yet move at the speed required
4 March 2026
Turmoil in Middle East reminds nascent clean hydrogen sector that its future prospects are dependent on global energy markets and geopolitics
25 February 2026
Low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia development is advancing much more slowly and unevenly than once expected, with high costs and policy uncertainty thinning investment. Meanwhile, surging energy demand is reinforcing the role of natural gas and LNG as the backbone of the global energy system, panellists at LNG2026 said
18 February 2026
Norwegian energy company has dropped a major hydrogen project and paused its CCS expansion plans as demand fails to materialise






