The Greenhouse Gas Protocol MEASURING to MANAGE: a GUIDE DESIGNING GHG ACCOUNTING and REPORTING PROGRAMS WRI and WBCSD Measuring to Manage
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The Greenhouse Gas Protocol MEASURING TO MANAGE: A GUIDE DESIGNING GHG ACCOUNTING AND REPORTING PROGRAMS WRI and WBCSD Measuring to Manage: 4, chemin de Conches 10 G Street, NE (Suite 800) A Guide to Designing GHG 1231 Conches-Geneva Washington, DC 20002 Switzerland USA Accounting and Reporting Programs Tel: (41 22) 839 31 00 Tel: (1 202) 729 76 00 Fax: (41 22) 839 31 31 Fax: (1 202) 729 76 10 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.wri.org Web: www.wbcsd.org Authors Taryn Fransen Pankaj Bhatia Angel Hsu Contributors Leticia Ozawa, SEMARNAT (Box 2.1) David Rich, WRI (Box 6.6) Ann Smith, carboNZero (Box 4.1) Jim Sullivan, US EPA (Box 5.1) Bella Tonkonogy, US EPA (Box 6.5) The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of the following This publication is made possible individuals: by the generous support of the American people through the Lisa Antonio, Rachel Biderman, Maria Cordeiro, Antonia Gawel, Leticia United States Agency for Ozawa, Samantha Putt del Pino, Janet Ranganathan, David Rich, and Jim International Development Sullivan reviewed and provided constructive feedback on earlier drafts, greatly (USAID).The contents are the enhancing the quality of this guide. Robert Heilmayr, Aram Kang, and John responsibility of the authors Larsen generously provided research inputs. Colleagues on the GHG Protocol alone and do not necessarily team and others at the World Resources Institute provided valuable support reflect the views of USAID or About WBCSD About WRI and advice during the design and implementation of the programs from which the United States Government. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development World Resources Institute is an environmental research this guide draws much of its content. (WBCSD) is a coalition of 175 international companies unit- and policy organization that creates solutions to protect Hyacinth Billings, Jennie Hommel, and Maggie Powell provided production ed by a shared commitment to sustainable development via the Earth and improve people's lives. Our work is concen- services and organizational support, ensuring the timely publication of a high- the three pillars of economic growth, ecological balance and trated on achieving progress toward four key goals: quality product. Alston Taggart at Studio Red designed the template on which social progress. Our members are drawn from more than 30 this publication is based. • Protect Earth's living systems countries and 20 major industrial sectors. We also benefit from a Global Network of more than 50 national and regional • Increase access to information business councils and partner organizations. • Create sustainable enterprise and opportunity Our mission is to provide business leadership as a catalyst for • Reverse global warming change towards sustainable development, and to support the Our strength is our ability to catalyze permanent change business license to operate, innovate and grow in a world through partnerships that implement innovative, incentive- increasingly shaped by sustainable development issues. based solutions that are founded upon hard, objective data.We know that harnessing the power of markets will Photo Credits Our objectives include: ensure real, not cosmetic change. • Business Leadership—to be a leading business advocate for Chapter 1 (page 2) Chapter 4 (page 18) Cover We are an independent, non-partisan organization.Yet, we sustainable development. Václav Pastucha Rodolfo Clix (grass) Christian Kitazume work closely with governments, the private sector, and civil Stock Exchange, sxc.hu Stock Exchange, sxc.hu (ruler) AuntieP,flickr.com • Policy Development—to participate in policy development to society groups around the world, because that guarantees create the right framework conditions for business to make ownership of solutions and yields far greater impact than Chapter 2 (page 6) Chapter 5 (page 31) Inside back cover an effective contribution towards sustainable development. any other ways of operating. Jean Scheijen Mark Aplet Gary Tamin • The Business Case—to develop and promote the business Stock Exchange, sxc.hu Each WRI report represents a timely, scholarly treatment case for sustainable development. Chapter 3 (page 11) Back Cover of a subject of public concern. WRI takes responsibility for Nevit Dilmen Chapter 6 (page 36) Miriam Zuk, WRI-Embarq • Best Practice—to demonstrate the business contribution to choosing the study topics and guaranteeing its authors and Stock Exchange, sxc.hu Peter Hostermann sustainable development solutions and share leading edge researchers freedom of inquiry. It also solicits and Stock Exchange, sxc.hu practices among members. responds to the guidance of advisory panels and expert • Global Outreach—to contribute to a sustainable future for reviewers. Unless otherwise stated, however, all the inter- developing nations and nations in transition. pretation and findings set forth in WRI publications are those of the authors. CHAPTER 1: Introduction Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 2 CHAPTER 2 PROGRAM OBJECTIVES AND PRINCIPLES 6 CHAPTER 3 ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM STRUCTURE 11 CHAPTER 4 ACCOUNTING, CALCULATION, AND REPORTING SPECIFICATIONS 18 CHAPTER 5 INVENTORY QUALITY MANAGEMENT 31 CHAPTER 6 PROCESSES FOR DESIGN, IMPLEMENTATION, AND REVIEW 36 GLOSSARY 44 RESOURCES 49 REFERENCES 51 1 1 Introduction 2 s concern about climate change climbs to program cover? What should its accounting, calculation, unprecedented levels, one of the most important and reporting specifications include? How can the quality of steps that a country, region, or state can take to reported information be ensured? address it is to establish a sound and credible Aplatform to account for and report greenhouse gas (GHG) This publication aims to help interested groups, such as emissions from corporations. While a process for reporting governments, industry associations, and environmental national (country-level) GHG emissions exists under the organizations, address these questions to design and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change implement effective GHG programs based on internationally (UNFCCC), this guide focuses on programs to promote the accepted standards and methodologies for GHG accounting accounting and reporting of emissions at the corporate and reporting. level. These programs can facilitate corporate GHG management, improve the quality and consistency of GHG data, support regulatory programs, and provide information GHG Programs and Standards: What and Why? to stakeholders. In the context of this guide, GHG program refers to a program that promotes the development of corporate Over the past decade, numerous efforts to design and GHG inventories – that is, quantified lists of corporations’ implement programs to promote the measurement and GHG emissions and sources.1 Many GHG programs also management of corporate GHG emissions have emerged have additional objectives that build on the corporate around the world. These programs are being developed at GHG accounting component, for example, to register GHG different geographic scales – including national, regional, emissions and reductions, to track progress towards GHG state or provincial, and municipal – and support different reduction targets, to support national climate change functions – such as voluntary reporting of GHG emissions, strategies, to support GHG trading programs, to facilitate GHG regulatory systems, and tracking progress towards GHG mitigation activities, or to provide information to GHG reduction targets – but all are based on a corporate- shareholders and investors. All of these program types build level GHG accounting and reporting platform. As such, a on a corporate GHG accounting and reporting platform, and common set of questions arises regarding their design and can therefore apply the design lessons in this guide. implementation: What type of GHG program is needed to meet which objectives? What geographic area should a CHAPTER 1: Introduction CHAPTER 1: Introduction for Standardization (ISO) as the basis for its ISO 14064- 1 Specification with Guidance at the Organization Level for Quantification and Reporting of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Removals (ISO 2006). Figure 1.1 illustrates the relationship between GHG standards, inventories, and programs. Some of the advantages of basing a GHG program on the Corporate Standard are as follows: • The Corporate Standard is consistent with ISO 14064-1. ISO 14064-1 explicitly cites the Corporate Standard as the basis for its accounting and reporting framework. • The Corporate Standard enjoys a widespread sense of legitimacy among its users and other stakeholders as a result of having been developed through an inclusive process convened by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). The Corporate Standard was developed over a period of several years by several hundred individuals from industry, government, research institutions, and environmental groups. • The Corporate Standard has been widely tested and implemented. A recent analysis by WRI estimated that To maximize the utility of GHG information reported nearly 1,000 companies from a range of economic to GHG programs, the information should be based on sectors had used the Corporate Standard to develop a a GHG accounting and reporting standard – that is, a GHG inventory. 3 framework that incorporates commonly accepted accounting approaches, concepts, and terminology to establish a true • Using the Corporate Standard will help a new GHG and fair account of GHG