Methodological issues relating to fluorinated gases
Background
The UNFCCC agreed that all Parties shall develop national inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of all greenhouse gases (GHGs) not controlled by the Montreal Protocol, as well as adopt national policies and take corresponding measures on the mitigation of climate change, by limiting its anthropogenic emissions of GHGs and protecting and enhancing its sinks and reservoirs.
The 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer controls chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), synthetic compounds which are ozone depleting substances (ODS) and are also GHGs.
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and perfluorocarbons (PFCs) are used as replacements for CFCs and HCFCs in various applications, as they do not deplete the ozone layer. HFCs and PFCs are a broad range of generally high-global warming potential (GWP) fluorinated gases emitted and/or used during fluorochemical production, aluminium production and electronics manufacturing, but they main application areas are as substitutes of ODS. In the electronics industry other fluorinated compounds with high GWP are also used, such as nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).
Under the Kyoto Protocol Parties agreed that each Party included in Annex I to the Convention (Annex I Party) shall pursue limitation or reduction of emissions of GHGs not controlled by the Montreal Protocol, defining these gases in its annex A: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), HFCs, PFCs and SF6.
Under the Paris Agreement, in order to achieve the long-term temperature goal, set out in its Article 2, Parties aim to reach global peaking of GHG emissions as soon as possible, so as to achieve a balance between anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of GHGs in the second half of this century. In that sense, each Party shall regularly provide a national inventory report of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of GHGs, prepared using good practice methodologies accepted by the IPCC and agreed upon by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Agreement.
Recent developments
The 28th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol held in Rwanda in October 2016 adopted the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which agrees on specific targets and a timetable that mandate countries to phase down the production and usage of HFCs, constituting a landmark legally binding agreement to reduce the emissions of these GHGs that could prevent up to 0.5 0C of global warming by the end of this century, while continuing to protect the ozone layer. Countries that ratify the Kigali Amendment commit to cut the production and consumption of HFCs by more than 80 percent over the next 30 years. Most developed countries will start reducing HFCs as early as 2019.
Fact sheet: The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol: HFC Phase-down
Reporting requirements
The quality of GHG inventories relies on the integrity of the methodologies used, the completeness of reporting, and the procedures for compilation of data.
To this end, Parties agreed at COP24 a set of standardized requirements for reporting national GHG inventories of Annex I Parties: the UNFCCC reporting guidelines on annual inventories for Parties included in Annex I to the Convention. Annex I Parties shall use the methodologies provided in the 2006 IPCC Guidelines, unless stated otherwise in these reporting guidelines
These guidelines require each Annex I Party, by 15 April each year, to provide its annual GHG inventory covering emissions and removals of direct GHGs: CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs,SF6.and NF3 from five sectors (energy; industrial processes and product use; agriculture; land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF); and waste), and for all years from the base year (or period) to two years before the inventory is due (e.g. the inventories due 15 April 2017 cover emissions and removals for all years from the base year to 2015). The base year is generally 1990.
GHG emissions and removals should be presented on a gas-by-gas basis in units of mass, with emissions by sources listed separately from removals by sinks. Annex I Parties should report aggregate emissions and removals of GHGs, expressed in CO2 equivalent, using the GWP values as agreed by decision 24/CP.19 or any subsequent decision by the COP on GWPs.
Annex I Parties shall report actual emissions of HFCs, PFCs, SF6 and NF3, providing data by chemical (e.g. HFC-134a) and category in units of mass and in CO2 equivalent on a disaggregated basis, except in cases where a minimum level of aggregation may be required to protect confidential business and military information.
Annex I Parties are strongly encouraged to also report emissions and removals of additional GHGs, such as hydrofluoroethers (HFEs), perfluoropolyethers (PFPEs), and other gases for which 100-year global warming potential values are available from the IPCC but have not yet been adopted by the COP. These emissions and removals should be reported separately from national totals.
At the same time, as per Article 4, paragraph 1 (a), and Article 12, paragraph 1(a) of the Convention, non-Annex I Parties are required to communicate their national inventories, to the extent its capacities permit, following the guidelines contained in annex to decision 17/CP.8.
These guidelines require that non-Annex I Parties, provide in its national inventories, on a gas-by-gas basis and in units of mass, estimates of anthropogenic emissions of CO2, CH4 and N2O by sources and removals by sinks, and encourage non-Annex I Parties to provide information on anthropogenic emissions by sources of HFCs, PFCs and SF6.
Non-Annex I Parties may wish to express HFC, PFC and SF6 emissions as either potential or actual. Potential emissions should be estimated using the tier 1 approach of the IPCC Guidelines. Actual emissions should be estimated using the tier 2 approach of the IPCC Guidelines.
Non-Annex I Parties reporting HFCs and PFCs should provide emission estimates on a gas-by-gas basis, that is, disaggregated estimates by chemical (e.g. HFC-23, HFC-134a, HFC-143a, etc.) expressed in units of mass (Gg).
The biennial update reporting guidelines for non-Annex I Parties contained in annex III to decision 2/CP.17 require that these Parties submit biennial updates of national GHG inventories. These updates should contain updated data on activity levels based on the best information available using the Revised 1996 IPCC Guidelines, the IPCC Good Practice Guidance and the IPCC good practice guidance for LULUCF. Each non-Annex I Party is encouraged to provide a consistent time series back to the years reported in the previous national communications and to include, among others a table on “National greenhouse gas inventory of anthropogenic emissions of HFCs, PFCs and SF6”.
Recent developments under the SBSTA
The UNFCCC secretariat following a practice of many years continues to collaborate with the Ozone secretariat in the context of addressing ODS that have high GWP on a regular basis and closely coordinates its work on related issues, including regularly participating in meetings.
This cooperation has been strengthened in recent years mainly in the context of the technical expert meetings (TEMs), when the focus related to addressing non-CO2 GHGs, including mitigation actions on emissions of fluorinated gases. The Ozone secretariat made a valuable contribution to the successful outcomes of these meetings.
More recently, both secretariats closely coordinated relevant work and participated in each other’s meetings, thereby exchanging expertise and knowledge in the lead-up to the adoption of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. In particular, there have been several exchanges related to how experience with the CDM could be used for the assessment of HFC projects under the Montreal Protocol.
Earlier developments under the SBSTA
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