This year offers the prospect of some real progress on international climate policy and with IEMA members engaged in supporting many key developments.
This month the WRI is running free workshops in London, Washington, Brussels and Taipei to launch the Greenhouse Gas protocol scope 2 guidance. IEMA and members participated in this four-year international collaboration to harmonise methods for reporting firms’ greenhouse-gas emissions from purchased electricity, steam, heat and cooling.
A key focus has been the way different way countries measure grid electricity from renewables. For example, the UK guidance advocates using “grid average” emissions, whereas, in the US, contractual emissions factors are employed, in many cases allowing zero emission reporting. The GHGP guidance uses a dual reporting approach, enabling transparency in reported footprints and accounting methods. Some concerns remain around how the guidance will feed into associated communications and claims, however.
Throughout 2015, the adaptation sub-committee (ASC) of the Committee on Climate Change will be working on the next UK risk assessment. In June, the ASC will report to parliament on progress on implementing the national adaptation programme. This includes an IEMA commitment to provide a web portal, new guidance on the adaptation business case and climate adaptation guidance in environmental impact assessments. At the end of the year, the UNFCCC will hold its COP meeting in Paris with the aim of agreeing a new global climate deal.
IEMA and GACSO members are engaged in all of these and other developments, with some now starting to share their work in the members’
area of the Institute’s climate change and energy web portal. Please visit the site and help build a resource and showcase the profession.