March 2013: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has expanded the services offered by the FAOSTAT information platform to include a domain on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as FAO expands its agri-environmental indicators to help countries identify, assess and report on environmental statistics.

The database provides emission statistics for all countries between 1990 and 2010, based on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reporting methodologies. The data have gone through peer review and are now open for feedback from countries.

The database fills a gap in that only a few developing countries have submitted GHG emission reports since 1990. As a result, FAO can act as an “honest broker” in assessing GHG emissions data for the land use sector, and in providing quality control and assurances, by using its long-term global data on agricultural activities.

FAO stresses that this is not a replacement for UNFCCC reporting requirements, but that the service can provide countries with: regular updates of global and regional GHG emissions land-use trends; a platform to bridge gaps in assessing and reporting GHG emissions; benchmarks for quality control; and a framework for national analysis and dialogue. The service is supported by the FAO Monitoring and Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Mitigation Potential in Agriculture (MAGHG) project. [FAO Introduction to Project on Monitoring and Assessment of GHG Emissions and Mitigation Potential in Agriculture] [FAOSTAT Website]