19 January 2016
UNFCCC Releases Status Reports of Six Annex I GHG Inventories
story highlights

The UNFCCC Secretariat has released the status reports, or initial assessments, of the annual greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories of the EU, Hungary, Norway, Romania, Turkey and the US.

The inventories assessed cover the period through 2013, with start dates varying among 1985, 1989 and 1990, as Parties with economies in transition are allowed to choose a base year other than 1990.

UNFCCC6 January 2016: The UNFCCC Secretariat has released the status reports, or initial assessments, of the annual greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories of the EU, Hungary, Norway, Romania, Turkey and the US. The inventories assessed cover the period through 2013, with start dates varying among 1985, 1989 and 1990, as Parties with economies in transition are allowed to choose a base year other than 1990.

Under the UNFCCC, Parties submit national GHG inventories to the Secretariat as part of their reporting requirements. Annex I Parties provide the inventory data in annual GHG inventory submissions, while non-Annex I Parties submit this data in their National Communications (NCs). The Secretariat prepared the status reports in accordance with decision 13/CP.20, which contains updated guidelines for the technical review of GHG inventories from Annex I Parties, as agreed at the Lima Climate Change Conference in December 2014.

According to the guidelines, the UNFCCC Secretariat prepares a draft status report within three weeks of receiving a Party’s GHG inventory as part of an initial assessment that aims to ensure each Annex I Party submits a consistent, complete and timely annual inventory in the correct format, in accordance with the updated guidelines on inventory submissions contained in decision 24/CP.19. The Party is consulted for comments on both the draft status report and initial assessment. These comments and the Secretariat’s initial assessment are forwarded to the Expert Review Team (ERT), which produces a final individual inventory review report. The initial assessment is published on the UNFCCC website as a “status report.”

The reports indicate that all six Parties completed their submissions in mid to late November. While annual inventories are generally due by 15 April, a delay in the release of the Common Reporting Format (CRF) Reporter software delayed submissions in 2015. In all six cases, the Secretariat notes the inventories follow, in general, the structure outlined in the updated reporting guidelines.

In addition, with the exception of Turkey, all inventories meet the minimum requirement of reporting on the following GHGs: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). Turkey excluded NF3, according to the status report.

All six included information on carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOX), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) and sulphur oxides (SOX) as well. [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of the EU] [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of Hungary] [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of Norway] [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of Romania] [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of Turkey] [Status Report of the Annual Inventory of the US] [Decision 13/CP.20] [Decision 24/CP.19]

related posts