Researchers from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) say they have successfully collected samples of enteric methane emissions from rangeland cattle in East Africa — a first for a region where emissions data are derived from equations developed in other countries.
A team from the ILRI's Mazingira Center in Nairobi, Kenya, used a measurement system previously validated in countries such as the U.S. and Australia but not yet successfully adapted to rangeland cattle in East Africa. The system consists of a light leather harness to mount two collection tanks on the back of the animal, with a halter fitted on the nose to collect breath samples for methane analysis. It requires the placement of a capsule with a tracer gas inside the animal to measure respiration rate and calculate total methane output.
