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A UNFCCC Greenhouse Gas Inventory
Under the UNFCCC, the
inventories Parties submit must follow certain requirements to ensure consistent
accounting of emissions and removals.
Parties are only
required to report anthropogenic emissions and removals.
“Anthropogenic” refers to greenhouse gas emissions and removals
that are a direct result of human activities or are the result of natural
processes that have been affected by human activities. Parties may include
any human-induced emissions and removals in their inventory as long as they
can be clearly documented and quantified.
Only direct greenhouse
gases (CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs, and SF6)
are to be included in the Party’s Global Warming Potential-weighted
emission totals. Because of their function in the UNFCCC process, national
inventories must provide point estimates for all source and sink categories
instead of a range of values. This requirement illustrates the political
role of greenhouse gas inventories (i.e., the emphasis on data suited for compliance
and accounting rather than scientifically acceptable ranges).
Parties are generally encouraged to report emissions on a calendar year
basis (i.e., Jan 1 through Dec. 31); however, because some Parties'
statistical systems are based on financial or other annual deadlines, it is
not required in the UNFCCC Reporting Guidelines.
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