Transparency is the backbone for the global climate change process, in particular the Paris Agreement. Accurate Greenhouse Gas (GHG) inventories are the foundation of transparency, and the basis for effective climate policies and actions.

In 2015, the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) was established as part of the Paris Agreement. Three years later, the Modalities, Procedures and Guidelines for the ETF were adopted as part of the Paris Rulebook. In this context, the 2006 IPCC guidelines were adopted as the mandatory basis to be used by all Parties in elaborating their Greenhouse Gas Inventories – a key component of the ETF.

At Glasgow, during COP26, new Common Reporting Tables for Greenhouse Gas Inventories were adopted, and a new reporting software is set to be developed by the UNFCCC Secretariat by June 2024. The implementation of these requirements poses a number of challenges, particularly for developing countries which may have limited capacity, and limited experience in GHG inventory efforts. A recently published report, prepared by the Istituo Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA) as an implementing partner of ICAT, aims to address some of these challenges and assist countries in moving towards the 2006 IPCC Guidelines to prepare for meeting the new reporting requirements under the Paris Agreement.

The report is structured into four modules: (1) Energy, (2) Industrial Processes and Product Use, (3) Agriculture Forestry and Other Land Use, and (4) Waste. Each module is organized by the reporting categories agreed upon in the newly adopted CRTs. The report was developed in the context of some ICAT country projects and uses the practical experience of supporting countries to overcome challenges to set out a guide that can help GHG inventory practitioners to advance more easily.

To view the report, please click here.