18/10/2017. Land use and climate. Auditing Land Use and Development 15th EUROSAI WGEA Annual Meeting - Plenary. Olivier Prigent Head of Task

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1 18/10/2017 Land use and climate Auditing Land Use and Development 15th EUROSAI WGEA Annual Meeting - Plenary Olivier Prigent Head of Task

2 Why is land use important for climate? Fossil fuel emissions 91% Changes in land use 9% Accumulated in atmosphere 44% Accumulated in land 31% Accumulated in ocean 26% Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry = LULUCF Source: Based on data from Global Carbon Project (2016) Carbon budget and trends 2016 (CDIAC; NOAA-ESRL; Le Quéré et al 2016; Global Carbon Budget 2016) Page 2

3 6 basic principles cause land to emit or absorb greenhouse gases Photosynthesis CO 2 Decomposition CH 4, CO 2, N 2 O Fertilising N 2 O, CH 4 Combustion CO 2, N 2 O, CH 4 Soil respiration CO 2 Harvest ( CO 2 ) Page 3

4 As a result, land use change, by changing the natural equilibrium, also emits or absorbs greenhouse gases 3 Examples Forest Wetlands Grasslands Cropland Settlements Planting of forest Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) Page 4

5 LULUCF represented in 2015, in absolute value, about 7% of EU emissions All sectors (excluding LULUCF) 4,58 LULUCF 0,31 (-7%) All sectors 4,28 GtCO 2 e/year Source: EU s GHG inventory submission to UNFCCC of 15 April 2017, EEA, Page 5

6 After having increased between 1992 and 1999, the rate of carbon storage decreases since 2008 LULUCF GHG absorption EU-28 (GtCO2e/year) More storage 0,35 +3% -1% 0,30 0,25 More emissions 0, Source: Eurostat; EU s GHG inventory submission to UNFCCC of 15 April 2017, EEA, 2017 Page 6

7 What s in it for auditors? Potential LULUCF-related risks Reporting and accounting rules incorrectly/ inconsistently applied throughout the EU Delayed reporting prevent effective use of data for policy making Deadweight effect might exist as standing forest are already absorbing CO 2 anyway and so do not add to emission reduction efforts Decreased climate ambition in other sectors LULUCF calculations not fully taking into account the climate-related risks on forests: New pests/ diseases, drought, fire Source: Landscape review of EU accountability and public audit arrangements, ECA, 2014 Page 7

8 The ECA published a landscape review on energy and climate last month. It will perform several climate-related audits in Audit on the flood prevention, protection and preparedness Audit on renewable energy Audit on desertification in the EU and land degradation due to climate change Audit on Monitoring, Reporting and Verification of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Page 8

9 APPENDIX Page 9

10 In current EU regulation, LULUCF is accounted for, but not included in climate targets Current regulation Kyoto Protocol (1997) Accounting mandatory on forest activities Voluntary for other land management practices EU LULUCF decision (2013): EU-wide reporting rules applicable to emissions and removals of greenhouse gases resulting from LULUCF activities Commission s proposal Proposed Effort Sharing Regulation (2016): All sectors, including LULUCF, should contribute to the EU's target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030 Proposed LULUCF regulation (2016): Revised LULUCF monitoring/ reporting rules Source: EU s GHG inventory submission to UNFCCC of 15 April 2017, EEA, Page 10

11 Stakeholders have divergent views on this proposed regulation Densely wooded countries: want credit for maintaining old forests (ability to plant new trees is limited) Farming countries: keener to benefit from planting new trees due to lower mitigation potential of agriculture Forest owners: concerned that harvesting wood would be strongly regulated NGOs: concerned that EU s mitigation ambition in other sectors is reduced Source: Landscape review of EU accountability and public audit arrangements, ECA, 2014 Page 11

12 To learn more on LULUCF, you could follow on-line courses offered by the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute Source: Page 12