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WHO'S COMMITED?
The 10 companies who have agreed to participate in the Global
Greenhouse Gas Register account for an estimated 800 million tons
of CO2-equivalent per year.
* Alcoa
* Anglo American
* Cemex
* Holcim
* Hewlett Packard
* Lafarge
* RAO UESR
* RWE
* ScottishPower
* Vattenfall
It was developed in partnership with the following organizations:
BrasilConnects, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, the International Emissions
Trading Association, the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, the
World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the World Energy
Council, the World Resources Institute and the World Wildlife Fund.
UNIFORMITY IN ACCOUNTING
The Greenhouse Gas Protocol Initiative (GHG Protocol) is a broad
international coalition of businesses, non-governmental organizations,
government and inter-governmental organizations. Operating under
the umbrella of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development
(WBCSD) and the World Resources Institute (WRI), the GHG Protocol
Initiative was created to help those companies who desire to understand
and manage their carbon risks in order to comply with national or
regional policies aimed at reducing corporate GHG emissions and
to ensure long-term success in a competitive business environment.
In addition, many governments are implementing national policies
to reduce GHG. These policies include the introduction of permit
trading systems; voluntary programs; carbon or energy taxes; and
regulations and standards on energy efficiency and emissions.
For all of these various systems to function well, and in a wider
sphere, there must be
uniformity in accounting processes. For example, Company A may not
want to trade with Company B unless it is sure that Company B’s
credits will “count” in Company A’s scheme.
The GHG Protocol currently consists of two modules:
* The Corporate GHG
Accounting and Reporting Standard and Guidance
This standard helps companies and other organizations identify,calculate
and report GHG emissions. It builds on the experience and knowledge
of over 350 leading experts drawn from businesses, NGOs, governments
and accounting associations. It has been road-tested by over 30
companies in nine countries. The initiative’s vision is to
harmonize GHG accounting and reporting standards internationally
to ensure that different trading schemes and other climate-related
initiatives adopt consistent approaches to GHG accounting. A revised
edition of the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard
will include a new chapter on voluntary corporate GHG targets, which
focuses on the steps to take and options to consider in setting
a target, as well as the implications of those options.
* The Project GHG Accounting and Reporting
Standard and Guidance
The development of standards and guidelines to assist companies
and project developers to account for GHG reduction projects becomes
important as national emissions trading schemes are evolving and
the trading volume of emission credits is growing. This module was
created to help develop accounting and reporting standards and/or
general guidance for both emission reduction and land use, land-use
change and forestry (LULUCF) projects.
The GHG Protocol builds on the knowledge of and lessons learned
by many organizations, practitioners and stakeholders to promote
convergence of GHG accounting practices. It is intended to reduce
costs, improve comparability and strengthen the capacity of managers
to make informed decisions on carbon risks and opportunities. The
protocol will also render
reported information credible and reliable in the eyes of external
stakeholders.
It is geared toward anyone who is responsible for accounting corporate
GHG emissions. Organizers emphasize that the GHG Protocol is not
just for big companies. In fact, WRI and WBCSD (both small office-based
organizations) have used the protocol to calculate their own emissions.
Based on its own experiences developing a GHG emissions inventory,
WRI has developed a guide for office-based organizations wanting
to estimate their own GHG emissions. The guide, Working 9 to
5 on Climate Change: An Office Guide, is available at www.safeclimate.net.
Back to: What
Gets Measured Gets Managed
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