Transcript Background to Workshop, Ann Gardner

Background to Workshop
Ann Gardiner
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Why do we need it?
 To understand what action is needed
in the EU to meet the Kyoto
Commitment
 What will happen if
– No new action is taken by Member
States (MS)
– MS and EC implement planned measures
– MS and EC implement new measures
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
What do we want to do?
 Basic comparisons - do MS and EU
projections match?
 Do we understand differences?
 Do we understand uncertainty?
 Can we reduce uncertainty?
 Can we quantify proposed policies
and measures?
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
How?
 First step - improve reporting on
transparency, completeness and
comparability?
 Spread Best Practice?
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Reporting requirements
 Annual report to Monitoring
Mechanism - can be the National
Climate Change Programmes or
National Communications to UNFCCC
 Reporting requirements given in
Guidelines agreed by Working Groups
I and II and the Committee
 Largely based on UNFCCC guidelines
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Projections reporting 2000
 Reasonable response from MS (extended
deadline) but transparency and
completeness of information variable
 Most useful information from National
Climate Change Programmes (Austria,
Denmark, France, Germany, Luxembourg,
Netherlands, UK)
 Description and analysis of projections
limited
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Projections reporting 2001
 Reporting by deadline not improved
 Transparency, completeness and
comparability not improved except where
National Climate Change Programmes
provided (Finland and Ireland in 2001)
 Questionnaire to MS to obtain underlying
information to improve Commission’s
analysis of the projections
 EC report timing out of sequence with 3rd
NC to UNFCCC
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Questionnaire 2001
 Aim to improve transparency of MS
reporting
 Tried to define important elements of the
reporting
 AEAT and FhG-ISI used available
information under the Monitoring
Mechanism to fill in as much as possible
 Sent to MS to fill in the rest
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Problems in 2001
 Five MS did not reply to questionnaire
(Spain, Ireland, Greece, Luxembourg,
Austria) - limited extra information in
most replies
 Some questions not well enough specified
 Comparability can not be solved through
questionnaires (e.g. sector definitions for
projections), other solutions needed (e.g.
Good Practice Guidance)
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Outcome in 2001
 Projections from Member States were
only comparable for a few sectors and
even then not all Member States were
covered (see draft EEA report)
 Key assumptions: GDP was available for 12
MS, international oil prices for 10 and
population for 9
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Discussion
 Can we agree sector definitions for
reporting of projections - IPCC?
 Can we improve reporting requirements transparency and comparability (i.e. more
prescriptive)?
 How do we spread best practice?
EUROPEAN TOPIC CENTRE ON AIR AND CLIMATE CHANGE