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Greenhouse Gas Reductions: Challenges in Determining What is Real

Greenhouse Gas Reductions: Challenges in Determining What is Real . NEPS – Baltimore 2008. Henry Balikov Vice President Goldman Environmental Consultants.

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Greenhouse Gas Reductions: Challenges in Determining What is Real

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  1. Greenhouse Gas Reductions: Challenges in Determining What is Real NEPS – Baltimore 2008 Henry Balikov Vice President Goldman Environmental Consultants © 2008 Goldman Environmental Consultants

  2. As Chair of the Auditing Roundtable’s focus on Climate Change and GHG issues, I want to thank my fellow AR members and the experts we have assembled for their input to this presentation. We expect to play a continuing role in protocol development and the standards for those who audit carbon footprints and credits.

  3. The Coming Tide of Climate Change • No federal regulation until 2010 at earliest with the current Warner-Lieberman Bill an indication of what is to come. • States and Regions are the current focus • RGGI • Western Climate Initiative • A little-known rider to a December 2007 Omnibus bill is allowing EPA to start collecting GHG information through a climate registry.

  4. Greenhouse Gas Challenges Our “Regional” Approach to GHG

  5. Greenhouse Gas Sources What does this chart tell us?

  6. Is the GHG problem already solved? Page © 2007 Goldman Environmental Consulting. All rights reserved.

  7. Or this this the unavoidable alternative? Page © 2007 Goldman Environmental Consulting. All rights reserved.

  8. GHG Motivation • Mitigate business risk and uncertainty • Capitalize on the benefits of quantifying GHG footprint • Addressing pressure to accurately account for GHGs

  9. GHG Motivation: Mitigate Business Risk & Uncertainty • Evaluate, influence, anticipate GHG policy/regulations • Develop multi-pollutant emission strategies • Improve near-term and long-term decisions

  10. GHG Motivation: Capitalize on the Benefits of Quantifying GHG Footprint • Establish baseline to take credit for early reduction • Recognition for implementing best management practices • Garner positive press and brand image

  11. GHG Motivation - Addressing Pressure to Accurately Account for GHGs • Financial interests • Customers • Voluntary organizations • Regulators

  12. GHG Temptation – “Greenwashing”

  13. Greenwashing’s Many Guises • Looking just one or two products or services, instead of at the whole organization • The truth in advertising: not whole truth, and not nothing but the truth • Lack of transparency

  14. Carbon Credits & Markets Carbon markets are fragmented and appropriate quality varies as is reflected in these Program Standards • CDM/JI – Considered highest standard to date • Gold Standard – Closely follows CDM for voluntary markets • VCS – Just launched, looking to bring more structure and transparency

  15. Tracking and Verifying GHGs • The scope of data being verified (e.g., GHG emissions from a company’s worldwide operations); • The types of data to gather (e.g., measured GHG emissions data, data on the level of activities that cause emissions, and emission factors for translating the activity data into GHG emissions); and • The range of tests to be performed to confirm the validity of the information (e.g., recalculation of emissions estimates).

  16. Verification Requires Many Skills Combination of Skills relating to: Air Quality / Emission Inventory Auditing Direct Measurement (CEM) Calculations (Mole Balance, Emission Factors, Surrogate Parameters) Historic Extrapolation (limited) Process Engineering Electric Power Generation & Transmission, Refineries, Gas and Chemical Manufacturing, Co-generation, Commercial Agriculture, Steel, Cement Financial Auditing Life Cycle Analysis

  17. Restricting Offsets To have a system that really works, offsets must: Result from actions taken on or after a date certain; Be real, demonstrable and quantifiable; Not be required by law; Have clearly established ownership; Be counted only once for compliance purposes; Be verified by a qualified third party; and Have occurred in an agreed upon geographic area

  18. The Coming Tide of Climate Change • We are in a period of apparent uncertainty • There will be some great opportunities and significant resource demands associated with the changes taking place. • This is the time to start assessing: • What direction do we want to head? • What is our overall plan for getting there? • What should we do first?

  19. Questions now or later hbalikov@goldmanenvironmental.com 856.296.5230 Henry Balikov, VP Goldman Environmental Consultants, Inc. 228 N. Church Street Moorestown, NJ 08057

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