The regulator of the new UN Paris agreement crediting mechanism (Pacm) will next month consider rules on carbon reduction non-permanence and reversals, which would define acceptable levels for land-based and forestry emissions-mitigation activities.
The Pacm regulator will in early October discuss rules drawn up last week, suggesting a 0.5-2.5pc range over a 100-year period as constituting "negligible" risk of mitigation reversal, UN climate body the UNFCCC's secretariat said today. The expert panel for article 6.4 of the Paris agreement, under which Pacm sits, has suggested the mechanism's supervisory body decide on a single value for this parameter.
The panel also suggests allowing more flexibility on timelines for submitting reversal-related reports, and introduction of a new option, for some methodologies, to apply a "materiality" threshold for determining that a release of stored greenhouse gases does not constitute a reversal.
The panel last week also finalised a draft tool on "common practice analysis", to help assess the extent to which a carbon mitigation activity under Pacm breaks new ground technologically. The panel suggests the supervisory body choose either one maximum threshold for least-developed countries (LDCs) and non-LDCs, or different thresholds with a more lenient one for LDCs and small island developing states.
The panel also worked on revising methodologies or methodological tools from Pacm predecessor the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The panel is seeking public input on some of them, including the revised CDM methodology for activities that flare or use landfill gas. The call is open for three weeks, and the panel will consider feedback at its 13-14 October meeting, a week after the supervisory body's next meeting.
The expert panel has also launched a call for input on a draft "investment analysis" tool, one of the tests designed to ensure projects are additional — namely, that investment would not have taken place without the finance generated by carbon credits.
The UNFCCC secretariat today said it has finalised its selection of experts for the article 6.4 appeal and grievance roster — a key instrument in aiming to guarantee the new mechanism's integrity, thereby setting it apart from CDM.
UNFCCC also said a new user guide and related forms have been published for the article 6.4 Interim Mechanism Registry (IMR). The IMR provides the infrastructure necessary to facilitate the first transactions under the mechanism, and enables the transition of certified emission reductions (CERs) from the CDM registry to Pacm, the secretariat said.
