The European Commission (EC) released on Monday a new proposal which sets out accounting rules applicable to greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions and removals for forestry and agriculture activities. Indeed, although emissions and removals from land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) are reported under the UNFCCC and partially under the Kyoto Protocol, EU climate policies never incorporated emissions from this sector because of the lack of an internationally agreed methodology. Recently, the 17th UNFCCC Conference in Durban established rules, definitions and modalities for accounting for the LULUCF as of a second commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol. In particular, accounting for forest management activities, including for harvested wood products, will be mandatory. The EC proposal, therefore, aimed at gradually integrating the LULUCF sector into the EU mitigation commitment by ensuring a robust and harmonized accounting framework.

Read the full article in the latest issue of Climate Policy News by Marinella Davide and Valeria Barbi.

Further news this week:

• The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed a co-financing agreement that will provide up to $600 million for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in Central America and the Caribbean over the next 5 years.
• China’s Guangdong province has adopted a cap of 660 million tonnes of CO2e in 2015, a 30 percent increase on its 2010 emissions.
• News about the carbon prices fluctuation.

Photo by World Bank Photo Collection at Flickr