A written declaration by a verification body that attests to the veracity of an operator’s emissions report and whether the emissions report conforms to the requirements of the Reporting Regulation. Any verification statement submitted to the ministry must be signed by the lead verifier responsible for the verification services and by an independent peer reviewer that was not involved in the verification services named in the verification statement [Sections 24 and 26].

Verification procedures used in the verification process need to be applied in a manner that provides a “reasonable level of assurance” [Section 23(e)].

The verification body must attest that the assertions in the emissions report (that is being verified) are “materially correct” and are a fair and accurate representation of the reporting operation’s GHG emissions for the reporting period, and that the report was prepared in accordance with the Reporting Regulation [Section 24].

Verification must be conducted in accordance with ISO 14064-3 (available for purchase via the Standards Council of Canada) [Section 23(1)].

Also, the verification process (or “verification”) must include a review of relevant records, a risk assessment, a verification plan (including a sampling plan), at least one site visit, an evaluation of the emissions quantification and report with the Reporting Regulation requirements and an assessment of the sources and magnitude of potential errors [Section 23(2)].

The regulation requires a verification body to be accredited by a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) in accordance with ISO 14065 through a program developed under ISO 17011 (both standards available for purchase via the Standards Council of Canada) [Section 18].

The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) both run GHG accreditation programs. Verification bodies with obligations under the Reporting Regulation intending to provide verification services to reporting operations in B.C. should consider accreditation from the SCC – in terms of cost-effectiveness and body of experience.

For verifications that are completed prior to December 31, 2012, verification bodies may be accredited by the California Air Resources Board under specified regulations [Section 18].

Envisioning a team approach to GHG verification, the ISO 14065 standard is designed for the accreditation of firms or business entities that intend to act as verification bodies. The Reporting Regulation requires accreditation of verification bodies but does not require certification of individual verifiers employed by a verification body.

Reporting operations can find listings of accredited verification bodies (with contact details) through the following links:

• Standards Council of Canada (SCC) - Directory of Accredited Clients
• American National Standards Institute (ANSI) - Accredited Bodies
• California Air Resources Board - List of Accredited Verification Bodies

The verification body (including members of the verification team) must demonstrate that the potential for a threat to independence that could influence the objectivity of the verification is insignificant [Section 22]. To support this, a verification statement must include a conflict of interest report [Section 26].

One of the advantages of a third party providing verification is that they are independent of both the reporting operation and government.  A third party can therefore conduct verification impartially.  Experience from other programs shows that conflict of interest provisions are crucial to a successful verification program that meets the ISO 14064-3 principle of independence.

In general, a verification statement may be positive and unqualified, positive but qualified or adverse.  A “positive” verification statement indicates that a verification body agrees with the emissions report while an “adverse” verification statement indicates that they do not.