CCXG Global Forum September 2017, BGA Accounting for diverse NDCs: Unpacking concepts and options by Christina Hood

1. Climate Change Expert Group www.oecd.org/env/cc/ccxg.htm
Accounting for diverse NDCs
(Breakout Group A)
Christina Hood (IEA) and Carly Soo (OECD)
CCXG Global Forum on the Environment and Climate Change
September 2017

2. 2 Climate Change Expert Group
Outline
 What is accounting and how is it useful?
 Accounting provisions in the Paris Agreement
 Accounting guidance for diverse NDC target types
 How could the “mechanics” of accounting work?

3. 3 Climate Change Expert Group
What is “accounting’’ and how is it useful?
Accounting is…
 The processes for measuring progress towards, and
achievement of, an emissions target
 Complementary, but not the same as transparency
Accounting for diverse NDC types is useful to…
 Allow Parties to track individual progress towards their
own mitigation-related NDC targets
 Understand others’ NDC targets and their progress
towards them
 Assess collective progress towards the long-term
mitigation goal

4. 4 Climate Change Expert Group
Accounting in the Paris Agreement
 Article 4.13 of the Paris Agreement:
“Parties shall account for their nationally determined
contributions… Parties shall promote environmental
integrity, transparency, accuracy, completeness,
comparability and consistency, and ensure the
avoidance of double counting”
 Accounting guidance - Decision 1/CP.21 Para 31-32
 Transparency framework and Article 6 accounting also
interlinked with Article 4 provisions

5. 5 Climate Change Expert Group
Nature of NDC mitigation targets?
Precise Budget Milestone
(exact compliance) (could over-achieve)
Implications for accounting framework?

6. 6 Climate Change Expert Group
Different types of NDC mitigation targets
Economy-wide coverage Limited sectors or gases
GHG target
quantified
ex ante
Type A: Economy-wide
absolute emission
reduction/limitation
Type B: Non-economy-wide
absolute emission
reduction/limitation
GHG target
quantified ex-
post
Type D: Economy-wide GHG
reduction relative to a BAU
baseline
Type F: Emissions intensity;
Emissions per capita goals
Type E: Sector-specific GHG
goals relative to a BAU baseline
Quantified in
non-GHG
metric
Type G: non-GHG goals,
including renewable energy,
energy efficiency, forest cover
Other
indicators of
progress
Type C: Peaking emissions in
a given year
Type H: Implementation of
policies and measures, creation of
institutions etc.
Non-quantified Type I: No measurable goal

7. 7 Climate Change Expert Group
Accounting guidance
 Needs to address the current diversity of NDC mitigation
target types, while also supporting direction of Art 4.4
 Art. 4.13 (TACCC, environmental integrity, avoidance of
double counting) could lead to
Shared implications among all quantitative NDC
targets
Specific guidance for various NDC target types

8. 8 Climate Change Expert Group
Issues in accounting for diverse NDC
mitigation target types
e.g. for sectoral GHG target, relative to BAU
 Need to clarify which parts of inventory are covered by NDC
 Calculate BAU and provide explanation of methodology and
assumptions (consistent ex-ante and ex-post)
 Estimate of target emissions levels ex ante
e.g. for non-GHG quantified goals
 Explicit accounting guidance or case-by-case basis?
 What milestones/indicators will be used to measure progress
and achievement?
 Data and methodologies for estimating base and target year?
 Estimates of associated GHG reductions?

9. 9 Climate Change Expert Group
How could accounting work ?
Creating an “accounting balance” to compare inventory emissions
to target level, after accounting for land sector and ITMOS
MtCO2eq
Measuredinventoryemissions
ITMOs
Target level
Target is
overachieved
Estimatedemissionswithoutmitigationactions
contributes to own NDC
exported (ITMOs)
MtCO2eq
Forestry
(a) (b)
Measuredinventoryemissions
Accountingbalance

10. 10 Climate Change Expert Group
Questions for Discussion
To what degree can the accounting
guidance be based on general principles for
all NDC target types, and where would
specific guidance for individual NDC types
be useful?