An Overview of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Verification Issues

Foreword     ii

Executive Summary     iii

I. Introduction    1
            A. Purpose     1
            B. Scope     2
            C. Approach     2
            D. Terminology     3

II. Stakeholders in the Verification Process     4
            A. Stakeholders and their Expectations     4
            B. Stakeholder Expectations and the Purpose of Verification     6

III. Approaches to Greenhouse Gas Emissions Verification    9
            A. Verification Fundamentals     10
            B. Greenhouse Gas Verification Approaches     11

IV. Drivers of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Verification     16
             A. Reporting Corporate Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Reductions     16
            B. Voluntary Government Programs for Reporting Greenhouse
                   Gas Emissions     20
            C. Voluntary Emissions Reductions Programs of Non-Governmental
                   Organizations     23
            D. Product Certification     23
            E. International Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction and
                    Sequestration Projects    24
            F. Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading     27
            G. National and International Solicitations for Greenhouse
                    Gas Emissions Reductions     30

V. Verification Issues     32

A. Who Conducts the Verification?     32
B. What To Verify: Inventory Protocols and Verification Standards     34
C. When To Verify    36
D. Cost of Verification     37
E. Materiality     37
F. Verifying the Baseline     38
G. Verifying Indirect Emissions     38
H. Verifying Life-Cycle Emissions    39

VI. Conclusions 40

End Notes 41

References 45