http://icarb.org/2013/05/06/5th-international-conference-minutes-and-presentations/

1. Mandatory Reporting: A Flexible Friend?
13th March 2013

2. What does Ecometrica do?
Environmental accounting with a focus on greenhouse gas emissions, water, forest
impacts, land use change and biodiversity

3. Selected Clients

4. • The Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Directors’ Reports) Regulations 2013*
• Defra – Guidelines for Company Reporting on GHG Emissions*
• IPCC – Guidelines for National GHG Inventories*
• WBCSD/WRI – Greenhouse Gas Protocol*
• WBCSD/WRI – Greenhouse Gas Project Accounting Standard*
• WBCSD/WRI – Greenhouse Gas Scope 3 Accounting Standard*
• PAS 2050 – Assessing the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of goods and services*
• The CarbonNeutral Protocol*
• The Carbon Trust Standard*
• Carbon Disclosure Project
• Carbon Reduction Commitment
• ISO 14064
• PAS 2060 - Specification for the demonstration of carbon neutrality
• The Climate Registry
• Western Climate Initiative (WCI) Cap and Trade Program , North America*
• Bilan Carbone
• Global Reporting Initiative
• EU Emissions Trading Scheme
• Wal Mart Sustainability Questionnaire
• Voluntary Carbon Standard
• Clean Development Mechanism
• Pan Vivo*
• Woodland Carbon Code – UK Forestry Commission
• EU technical guide for the calculation of the environmental footprint of companies
• EU harmonised methodology for the calculation of the environmental footprint of products
*Ecometrica’s analysts
provided input to these
standards

5. The Greenhouse Gas Emissions
(Directors’ Reports) Regulations 2013

6. Mandatory GHG Reporting – The Rules
• All UK firms listed on main index of LSE (1,100)
• Report greenhouse gas emissions in Directors’ reports
• All Kyoto GHGs (not just CO2)
• Global Operations
• Must report GHG emissions for “all assets that are owned, controlled or operated”
• Scope one and two
• In directors reports after 1st October 2013
• Cements current best practice in GHG reporting into law
• Choice of GHG accounting protocol

7. Organisational GHG Accounting Standards
(Top 3)
1. Greenhouse Gas Protocol (WBCSD/WRI)
2. ISO 14064 (ISO)
3. Guidance on how to measure and report your greenhouse gas emissions (Defra)

8. What does it mean for the companies that
have never reported – how hard is it?
• Have to start from the beginning
• Will most likely need to appoint expert consultants or implement a GHG
accounting system or both
• More reliance on Defra GHG accounting guidelines

9. What does it mean for companies that
already report emissions?
• Gap analysis to see if existing reports meet requirement
• All GHGs?
• All Scope and One and Two?
• Global operations?
• All assets that are owned controlled or operated?
• Have to think about previous GHG reports and if need to be restated
• Have to think about how any restatements impact efforts toward reduction targets

10. What is the latest news on the reporting
requirements?
• “all assets that are owned, controlled or operated”.....?
• Compliance period begins from October 1st

11. Why is the flexible approach a good thing?
• It’s easier for the reporting companies
• Companies can maintain consistency with existing reporting
• Companies can set boundaries for things they can realistically get data for

12. Why is the flexible approach a bad thing?

13. How are companies responding to the new
requirement?
• A broad spectrum from the head in the sand to ultra prepared
• Many are worried about the accuracy of the results and whether it would pass audit
• No audit requirement but many are planning to have audit anyway

14. What is the point?
To reduce emissions

15. Will it work?
I don’t know but my hunch is yes

16. To summarise
• Regulations enter in to effect in April
• Compliance period commences after October 1st 2013
• Regulations likely to allow more flexibility for reporting companies
• This will be better for reporting companies
• This is likely to give better quality GHG reports
• Means that comparing between companies is not necessarily possible
• Might encourage companies to report and manage less emissions
• The new UK legislation will bring its own challenges
• But it is likely to result in emission reductions

17. Thank You
Contact:
Gary Davis, Operations Director
gary.davis@ecometrica.com
+44 (0) 131 662 4342