Western Climate Initiative Releases GHG Offset Protocol Recommendation Process
January 3, 2012
On December 19th the Western Climate Initiative’s offsets committee released the Final Offset Protocol Review and Recommendation Process [1]. This document provides final recommendations for a four-step process for setting up offset protocols. Existing offset protocols include landfill gas capture, reforestation, and forest conservation. The recommended steps for creating new offset protocols in the WCI are:
- Identify possible offset protocols – a protocol must be nominated by one of the WCI jurisdictions. The jurisdiction will establish a list of candidate protocols and make that list known to stakeholders.
- Evaluate those protocols by expert task teams – a task team is assembled from each WCI partner jurisdiction with additional technical advice from expert advisors. Then methods for GHG quantification, reduction and monitoring are determined.
- Get public consultation – if the prior step results in the protocol being recommended, then the protocol is posted on the WCI website, and a webinar takes place followed by 30 days in which people can submit comments on the protocol.
- Recommend the protocol for adoption by the WCI jurisdictions – WCI partners decide whether to recommend the protocol or not. If recommended, it is available for each WCI jurisdiction to adopt following its own procedures (which may involve revising it).
This new report is designed to provided clear and robust step-by-step instructions which will allow for a more efficient offset system and encourage consistency across WCI partner jurisdictions. It will help ensure an adequate supply of low-cost, high-quality offsets for the WCI jurisdictions [1].
Background
The Western Climate Initiative is a collaboration of independent jurisdictions in North America that are working together to tackle climate change at the regional level. Partner jurisdictions have committed to implementing a cap and trade system across the region. Cap and trade is a market-based system for managing and reducing industrial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The government sets a yearly cap on the tonnage of GHG emissions for each industrial facility, and those facilities that exceed their cap, must buy more allowances in the market. Those who do not exceed the cap, can bank their allowances for later use, or sell them on the market. Cap and trade is a effective and efficient way to reduce overall emissions, while rewarding greener industries. The cap and trade system can also include offsets. And offset in a cap and trade system is a reduction or removal of one ton of carbon dioxide (or CO2 equivalent) from a source outside the regulated sector (i.e. a source not subject to an emissions cap). The reduction or removal must meet certain criteria, such as the offset must be real, additional, permanent, and verifiable [2].
Ontario is committed to participating in a cap and trade system through its partnership with the Western Climate Initiative (WCI). There are currently four Canadian provinces (British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec), and seven U.S. states (Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and Montana) that are considered partner jurisdictions in the WCI [3]. Currently California and Quebec are the jurisdictions with regulations in place to implement a cap and trade system. British Columbia and Ontario are following close behind. The goal of the WCI cap and trade program is to reduce GHG emissions to 15% below 2005 levels by 2020.
References:
[3] www.ene.gov.on.ca/environment/en/category/climate_change/STDPROD_078899.html
Blog post by Cynthia Whaley
