China

Background

In 2007, the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol team launched an ambitious initiative to develop GHG standards and tools and pursue capacity building in China. This was a major step forward in China’s ability to mesure, and therefore manage, its greenhouse gas emissions. GHG Protocol is now working with local and international partners to develop a further suite of tools suitable for use in China. The team is conducting on-the-ground research within key industrial sectors, conducting city-level GHG accounting, and aiding the development of GHG management programs. Partnering with businesses, research institutes, universities, associations and local governments and agencies, WRI is working to disseminate and implement GHG Protocol standards and tools to inform the design of effective programs and policies to combat climate change. WRI currently has four full-time staff based in China working directly for the GHG Protocol team.

Goal

WRI works to disseminate and implement GHG Protocol standards and tools to inform the design of effective business and government programs and policies to combat climate change.

Projects

In China, WRI focus on three areas:

1. Develop GHG Protocol standards and tools for China

Working with partners, WRI contributes to the development of standards, tools and methodologies in various sectors and areas, therefore removing the technical barriers for GHG quantification, accounting and reporting in China.

Industrial standards and tools

WRI works with associations and experts in key industrial sectors in China. For example, WRI is working with the China Electricity Council to develop a GHG accounting tool for coal-fired power plants, which draws experience from international best practice and tailors to China’s power sector practice and needs.

Industrial sectors:

• Power Sector
• Cement Sector
• Oil and Gas Sector
• Chemical Sector
• Petro Chemical Sector

Partners:

China Business Council for Sustainable Development
World Business Council for Sustainable Development Cement Sustainable Initiative
China Building Materials Academy
China Electricity Council

Cross Sector standards and tools

• GHG Protocol Scope 3 (Value Chain) Standard
• GHG Protocol Product Standard
• Energy – GHG conversion tool
• Hong Kong GHG Guidelines for Buildings

Partners:

Tsinghua University
NDRC Energy Research Institute
China National Institute of Standardization
Institute for Sustainable Communities
Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department

Citywide GHG accounting framework

As low-carbon city planning becomes increasingly important in rapidly developing Chinese cities, and at present there is no common framework for undertaking city-level GHG inventories, WRI is developing a citywide GHG accounting framework to guide city-level GHG accounting practices in China. WRI aims to develop and pilot-test this GHG accounting framework by partnering with the municipal government of Xiaolan town in Zhongshan City, an industrial town in Southern China.

Partners:

Guangzhou Academy of Energy Testing and Inspection
The People’s Government of Xiaolan Town, Zhongshan City

2. Build GHG quantification, accounting and reporting capacity in China

Aiming to address capacity challenges in human resources, WRI works to train skilled GHG management professional en mass in China through training of trainers and capacity building programs.

Partners:

Institute for Sustainable Communities
Guangdong EHS Academy
Hong Kong Productivity Council
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
China Building Materials Academy

3. Assist the development of GHG management programs in China

Practical, rigorous and harmonized programs are crucial to the management of greenhouse gases. Therefore, WRI provides technical assistance to various GHG management programs.

Partners:

Energy and Climate Registry
Tianjin Climate Exchange
Beijing Environment Exchange
Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology
• China Cement Association
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
China Building Materials Academy
World Business Council for Sustainable Development Cement Sustainable Initiative
Tsinghua University
Guangdong Energy Conservation Center