A group of leading global companies has formed the US$100 million Superpollutant Action Initiative to accelerate the reduction of superpollutants – powerful warming agents such as methane, black carbon and refrigerant gases that are responsible for roughly half of all climate warming to date and can contribute to harmful air pollution.

The initiative is organized by the Beyond Alliance, a business-led coalition focused on scaling corporate funding for high-integrity climate solutions. Beyond will support participating companies – among them, Amazon, Autodesk, Figma, Google, JPMorganChase, Salesforce and Workday – by providing research, reporting, knowledge sharing and other activities associated with implementing the initiative.

Through the initiative, the companies will each identify and fund high-impact projects targeting superpollutants around the world. This initiative aims to deliver positive climate, health and economic benefits by scaling funding for projects that cut these often short-lived, but highly potent pollutants, and to deploy the US$100 million through 2030 to unlock action in areas where progress is critically needed.

Superpollutants are emitted from sources like energy production, agriculture, waste and cooling systems. Although the most common ones remain in the atmosphere for less time than carbon dioxide, Beyond points out, they can trap heat tens to thousands of times more powerfully, making their reduction one of the fastest ways to slow near-term warming.

Many solutions to cut superpollutants are already available and cost-effective. Methane alone, Beyond notes, drives roughly a third of today’s near-term warming, and global methane abatement could avoid more than US$1 trillion in market damages by 2050.

Rapid action on superpollutants can also deliver significant human and environmental benefits. Aggressive reductions, according to Beyond analysis, could avoid more than half a degree Celsius of warming by 2050, prevent millions of premature deaths from air pollution each year and protect tens of millions of crops annually. Cutting superpollutants is, therefore, one of the most effective and immediately available ways to slow near-term warming, making it a critical emergency brake for the planet.

To identify the best opportunities for rapid action, the Beyond initiative will partner with the Carbon Containment Lab and leading scientific experts to create a global roadmap highlighting how companies can support progress on superpollutant action.

The roadmap, set to be released later this year, will outline how and where private capital can be deployed to achieve the greatest impact and will be made publicly available to enable other companies, investors and governments to accelerate progress.

Beyond structured this initiative based on a set of guiding principles designed to maximize results, including catalytic impact, scientific rigour, transparency, urgency and collaboration.

“Superpollutants are a major part of the equation to limit atmospheric warming,” says Randy Spock, Google’s carbon credits and removals lead. “Experts agree that eliminating them where we can is one of the most powerful levers we have to deliver near-term impact, playing a vital and complementary role to removing carbon dioxide. Google is excited to join our peers in accelerating progress to eliminate superpollutants.”

Luke Pritchard, Beyond’s director, adds: “We are in a decisive decade for the climate, and reducing superpollutants is one of the few levers that can bend the curve quickly. This initiative shows how companies can deploy private capital where it matters most – unlocking solutions that cut warming, improve air quality and deliver measurable results now, while creating a clear pathway for others to follow.”