More than 100 countries have joined an effort led by the United States and European Union to slash emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane 30% by 2030 from 2020 levels, an initiative aimed at tackling one of the main causes of climate change.

The Global Methane Pledge, launched at the COP26 summit in Glasgow on Tuesday after being announced in September, now covers countries representing nearly half of global methane emissions and 70% of global GDP, U.S. President Joe Biden said.

Among the new signatories was Brazil - one of the world's biggest emitters of methane. The pledge now includes six of the world's 10 biggest methane emitters: the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Mexico. China, Russia, India and Iran, also top-10 methane emitters, have not signed up.

Guest post from Reuters