Reporting Regulation – Greenhouse Gas Reduction
(Cap and Trade) Act
Reporting Regulation | Reporting Operations | Verification | Questions & Answers | Regulatory Amendment | One-Window Reporting | Guidance | Amended Quantification Methods | Natural Gas Carbon Content for WCI.040 | 2010 Facility Emissions Reports
Reporting Operations
Introduction
The Reporting Regulation, under authority of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act and the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act, was approved by Order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council on November 25, 2009. The regulation sets out the requirements for facilities within B.C. emitting 10,000 tonnes or more carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year to report greenhouse gas emissions to the British Columbia Ministry of Environment.
Operations Required to Report Emissions
Reporting operations located in British Columbia and emitting 10,000 tonnes or more of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year beginning on January 1, 2010 will be required to report greenhouse gas emissions.
Reporting operations emitting 25,000 tonnes or more of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year would have a third party verification requirement. Emissions of carbon dioxide from biomass listed in Schedule C of the regulation are excluded from the calculation of the reporting and verification thresholds, but are reported if thresholds are otherwise exceeded.
Within a reporting operation the regulation distinguishes between a single facility operation and a linear facilities operation, the facility definition is provided here.
Single facility operations are specified industrial activities (such as pulp and paper production, electricity generation and mining) with sources of GHG emissions which are listed in Schedule A Table 1. Both single site and linear operations have requirements to report on emissions from general stationary combustion. Only single facility operations have a requirement to report on emissions from mobile equipment.
Linear facilities operations encompass:
- oil and gas extraction and gas processing activities;
- electricity transmission;
- natural gas transmission, natural gas distribution or natural gas storage
- oil transmission;
- carbon dioxide transmission – see Schedule A Table 2.
The regulation includes a detailed list of activities (associated with industrial production, manufacturing, processing and refining) and emission sources types (associated with these activities) that result in greenhouse gas emissions that must be reported – see Schedule A.
Quantification methods are prescribed for each activity in Column 5 of Schedule A, Table 1 or 2 [link to Regulation] as either those from the Western Climate Initiative’s Final Essential Requirements of Mandatory Reporting or the Methodology Manual (PDF/888 KB). Though the WCI website contains the definitive version of those quantification methods, for ease of access the methodology manual contains both sets of methods.
Types of operations that may have an obligation to report include: |
- Aluminum or alumina production
- Base metals smelting
- Cement production
- Chemical/petrochemical production
- Large commercial or institutional facilities
- Electricity generation and co-generation (thermal)
- Electricity transmission (SF6 emissions)
- Food production
|
- Lime manufacturing
- Manufacturing
- Mining
- Non-metallic mineral products manufacturing
- Oil and gas extraction and gas processing
- Pipeline transportation/transmission
- Petroleum refining
- Pulp and paper production
- Wood products manufacturing
|
Operations NOT Required to Report Emissions
The Reporting Regulation does not apply to:
- “Public sector organizations” (provincial government and other provincial public sector organizations) – which are subject to the Carbon Neutral Government Regulation under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act – except for BC Hydro and BC Transmission Corporation electricity generation and electricity transmission emissions.
- Landfill gas emissions – with reporting obligations under the Landfill Gas Management Regulation (B.C. Reg. 391/2008).
Disclaimer
Note that information provided on this website does not take precedent over the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act and Reporting Regulation, or the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act. This legislation provides the legal basis and direction for the reporting of specified greenhouse gas emissions by specified parties.
Further information
If you have any questions regarding verification requirements in the Reporting Regulation please contact the Ministry of Environment at: dennis.paradine@gov.bc.ca
Reporting Requirements
The following flow chart has been developed to outline the overall process and requirements for reporting operations under the Reporting Regulations. Within the flow chart steps, links to supplementary information which provide clarification and guidance are provided.
Key Dates
2010 |
| January 1 |
BEGIN COLLECTING EMISSIONS DATA
Ensure data collection and documentation systems support compliance with regulatory requirements. |
| February 28 |
INITIAL FORECAST OF EMISSIONS
Forecast emissions to determine if likely to be greater than 10, 000 tonne emission reporting threshold. |
| April 1 |
REGISTER
If forecast greater than 10,000 tonnes, complete form on the Ministry of Environment web page (available February, 2010). |
2011 |
| January 1 |
BEGIN COMPILING EMISSIONS DATA FOR 2010 EMISSIONS REPORT
CONTINUE COLLECTING DATA - 2011 EMISSIONS |
| March 31 |
SUBMIT 2010 REPORT
A. If 10,000 tonne or more and less than 25,000 tonnes:
- Report 2010 emissions;
- Report 2006 through 2009 emissions for each year emissions were greater than 20,000 tonnes.
B. If 25,000 tonnes or more:
- Report 2010 emissions;
- Engage verification body and preparation for submissions of supplementary report with verification statement (by Sept. 1);
- Report 2006 through 2009 emissions for each year emissions were greater than 20,000 tonnes.
|
| As Required (starting June 1) |
SUBMIT SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT (If required)
Supplementary reports of omissions, inaccuracies or change in information must be submitted within 60 days of the operator becoming aware. |
| September 1 |
SUBMIT SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT WITH VERIFICATION STATEMENT
For facilities with greater than 25,000 tonnes of emissions. |
2012 |
| January 1 |
BEGIN COMPILING EMISSIONS DATA FOR 2011 EMISSIONS REPORT
CONTINUE COLLECTING DATA - 2012 EMISSIONS |
| March 31 |
SUBMIT 2011 REPORT
A. If 10,000 tonnes or more and less than 25,000 tonnes:
- Report 2011 emissions.
B. If 25,000 tonnes or more, or if more than 25,000 tonnes in 2009:
- Report 2010 emissions;
- Engage verification body and preparation for submission of supplementary report with verification statement (by Sept. 1).
C. If less than 10,000 tonnes and less than 25,000 tonnes in 2010:
- Provide condensed report.
D. If no report on 2010 emissions:
- Report 2006 through 2009 emissions for each year emissions are greater than 20,000 tonnes.
|
| As Required (starting June 1) |
SUBMIT SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT (if required)
Supplementary reports of omissions, inaccuracies or changes in information must be submitted within 60 days of the operator becoming aware. |
| September 1 |
SUBMIT SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT WITH VERIFICATION STATEMENT
For facilities with greater than 25,000 tonnes of emissions. |
2013 and Beyond |
| January 1 |
BEGIN COMPILING EMISSIONS DATA FOR PREVIOUS YEAR'S EMISSIONS REPORT
CONTINUE COLLECTING DATA - CURRENT YEAR'S EMISSIONS |
| March 31 |
SUBMIT ANNUAL REPORT (of previous year's emissions)
A. If 10,000 tonnes or more and less than 25,000 tonnes:
- Report previous year's emissions.
B. If 25,000 tonnes or more, or if more than 25,000 in either of previous two years:
- Report previous year's emissions;
- Submit verification statement.
C. If less than 10,000 tonnes and less than 25,000 tonnes in the previous year:
- Provide condensed report.
D. If no previous emissions report:
- Report 2006 through 2009 emissions for each year emissions are greater than 20,000 tonnes.
|
| As Required (starting June 1) |
SUBMIT SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT (if required)
Supplementary reports of omissions, inaccuracies or changes in information must be submitted within 60 days of the operator becoming aware. |
Key Definitions
| Term |
Definition |
"Reporting Operation" is: |
(a) a single facility operation
(b) a linear facilities operation
that, during the reporting period, has a total amount of attributable greenhouse gas emissions that is greater than or equal to 10 000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, not including carbon dioxide produced from biomass listed in Schedule C. |
“Facility” includes: |
(a) All buildings, structures, stationary items and equipment that
(i) Are located or used primarily on a single site, contiguous sites or adjacent sites;
(ii) Are managed or controlled by the same person, and
(iii) Function as a single integrated site,
(b) Wastewater collection and wastewater treatment systems that treat waster from a facility, it the systems are on or adjacent to a site or sites referred to in paragraph (a) (i) and are managed or controlled by the person referred to in paragraph (a) (ii), and
(c) Mobile equipment , primarily used at the site or sites referred to in paragraph (a) (i), that functions as part of the integrated site; |
"Single facility operation" means: |
an operation that operates in a facility and carries out one or more activities listed in Table 1 of Schedule A, but does not include a linear facilities operation |
"Linear facility operations" means:
|
all of the facilities within British Columbia that are managed or controlled by the same person and carry out one or more activities listed in column 2 of Table 2 in Schedule A |
"Mobile equipment" includes: |
(a) mobile equipment used for the on-site transportation or movement of substances, materials or products, and
(b) other mobile equivalent such as tractors, mobile cranes, log transfer equipment, mining machinery, graders, backhoes and bulldozers and other industrial equipment,
but does not include an on road vehicle, an aircraft or marine vessel
(note: on road vehicle is defined in section 1 of the regulation) |
Schedule C - Biomass Exclusions |
Wood biomass, or the wood biomass component of mixed fuels, including
(a) wood residue within the meaning of the Forest Act
(b) wood-derived fuel and black liquor from pulp and paper production processes, and
(c) Woody matter from agricultural trimmings, tree thinning and orchard removals,
But not including wood biomass that fails to meet the criteria for carbon neutrality established by the jurisdiction in which it was produced, if any. |
Emissions Estimator
The ministry has prepared a GHG Emissions Estimator that can be used to estimate greenhouse gas emissions from a facility in advance of comprehensive data collection and compilation. The calculator can be used to provide an operator with a preliminary indication as to whether the facility may have obligations under the Reporting Regulation, in particular whether they may have a registration requirement.
Fuel use, raw material use, and production data are entered by the facility operator into the spreadsheet. Greenhouse gas emission estimates are then automatically generated using standard emission factors.
2010 GHG Reporting Registration
Per the requirements outlined in section 9 of the Reporting Regulation, operators of a single facility or linear facilities operation that may become a reporting operation under the regulation must register with the Ministry.
To determine whether a single facility or linear facilities operator has an obligation to register, the operator is required to forecast no later than February 28, 2010, whether or not, during the reporting period (initially January 1 2010 to December 31, 2010), the total greenhouse gas emissions (not including carbon dioxide from biomass listed in Schedule C) attributable to that operation are likely to be greater than or equal to 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
For operations that have forecast to exceed the 10,000 tonne threshold during the reporting period a completed registration form must be submitted to the Director in the form prescribed by March 31, 2010. Alternately, if an operation has initially forecast to emit less than 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent during the reporting period, but then after February 28, 2010, it is determined that the operation’s total attributable greenhouse gas emissions equals or exceeds 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (not including carbon dioxide produced from biomass listed in Schedule C), a completed registration form must be submitted within 90 days of the date of that determination.
Registration is done on the basis of each individual reporting operation. Therefore a company is required to submit separate registration forms for each single facility operation or linear facilities operation.
The registration process consists of downloading, completing, saving and emailing as an attachment the B.C. GHG Reporting Registration Excel Template to the Director at ghgreporting@gov.bc.ca by March 31, 2010.
A comprehensive guidance document has been prepared to assist reporting operations in completing the registration process.
For questions regarding the registration process, please contact Julie Anne Bathory-Frota.
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