Accounting for NDCs under the Paris Agreement: What is it for and when will it be undertaken? by Christina Hood

1. Climate Change Expert Group www.oecd.org/env/cc/ccxg.htm
Accounting for NDCs under the
Paris Agreement:
What is it for and when will it be
undertaken?
Christina Hood (IEA)
CCXG Global Forum on the Environment and Climate Change
September 13-14, 2016

2. 2 Climate Change Expert Group
Key Messages
 “Accounting” is about understanding progress and
achievement compared to the NDC target
 Accounting is not the same as compliance or as
transparency
 Accounting could be used as part of the Article 13
biennial reporting process

3. 3 Climate Change Expert Group
Paris Agreement
Article 4.13
Parties shall account for their nationally determined
contributions. In accounting for anthropogenic emissions
and removals corresponding to their nationally determined
contributions, Parties shall promote environmental integrity,
transparency, accuracy, completeness, comparability and
consistency, and ensure the avoidance of double counting, in
accordance with guidance adopted by the Conference of the
Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to this
Agreement.
Article 13.7
Each Party shall regularly provide […] information necessary
to track progress made in implementing and achieving
its nationally determined contribution under Article 4.

4. 4 Climate Change Expert Group
What is “accounting” for?
 Functions:
 Ex-post: understand achievement compared to NDC target
 During implementation: track progress towards NDCs
 Ex-ante: Enable understanding of NDCs and their GHG
impacts
 Accounting compliance
 Accounting transparency
 Accounting elements for quantified NDCs
 What to count (e.g. definition of tCO2eq)
 Methodology for comparison of emissions, ITMOs and
LULUCF with NDC target level

5. 5 Climate Change Expert Group
The challenge of varying NDC types
 GHG: absolute, GDP-linked, BAU, peaking, per-
capita
 Non-GHG: forest area, renewable, energy efficiency
targets, black carbon
 Policies and Measures
… economy-wide and sectoral
… single and multi-year
… precise targets or milestones ?

6. 6 Climate Change Expert Group
Accounting in a GHG allowance-based system
(Kyoto Protocol Annex I Parties)
Base year Year in
target
period
EmissionstCO2eq
Historicalemissions
Allowanceunits(AAUs)
Inventoryemissions
Other
units
In this system, accounting is closely linked to
compliance with the target
Compliance with the target is achieved by submitting
units equal to total inventory emissions
Target
level

7. 7 Climate Change Expert Group
Accounting for GHG-framed targets without AAUs
(Paris Agreement)
Inventoryemissions
EmissionstCO2eq
Target
level
Accountedemissions
ITMOs
Accounting does NOT equal compliance with the target.
Accounting provides an understanding of progress and
achievement compared to the target level.
LULUCF

8. 8 Climate Change Expert Group
1. After the end of the target period/year only ?
 Account for target period/year emissions, LULUCF and ITMOs
either in the following biennial transparency report or in a
separate “true up” process
 Some type of forward-looking estimate to “track progress
made in implementing and achieving its NDC” ? (challenging)
2. On an ongoing basis in biennial transparency reporting ?
 Parties could present emissions inventory and “accounted
emissions” in each biennial transparency report
 In the biennial report after NDC target year/period, Party
compares “accounted emissions” to target level
WHEN might Parties “account” ?

9. 9 Climate Change Expert Group
CCXG papers on UNFCCC accounting

10. 10 Climate Change Expert Group
Discussion Questions
1. What does it mean to “account for NDCs”
under the Paris Agreement, given the diverse
range of NDC types? At what point(s) during
the NDC cycle could it be undertaken?
2. What is the link between accounting under
Article 4 and the enhanced transparency
framework under Article 13?