Capacity Building for Paris Agreement Reporting
On this page:
Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator | National GHG Inventories | NDC Tracking | Projections of GHG Emissions and Sinks | Other Initiatives and Resources
Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator
The Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator is a capacity building initiative of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of State to help developing countries produce high-quality Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) under the Paris Agreement Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), which include:
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A greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory based on the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National GHG Inventories,
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Information on indicators used to track progress in implementing and achieving Paris Agreement mitigation targets (Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs),
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Reporting on the implementation of policies and measures to achieve NDCs, and
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Projections of GHG emissions and sinks.
Through the Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator, EPA is partnering with other U.S. government agencies, capacity building partners in other countries, and international organizations to provide technical assistance and tools to developing countries to meet reporting requirements under the ETF. Through this program, EPA is providing bilateral and regional technical assistance in Asia, Africa, and the Latin American and Carribean regions to support the preparation of high-quality national GHG inventories and BTRs.
Beginning in 2024, countries will be required to submit BTRs every two years to help build trust and confidence that countries are taking action to meet their national climate targets under the Paris Agreement. EPA’s capacity building efforts support countries in meeting their reporting requirements under the ETF, improving transparency and allowing for more robust international comparisons of GHG emission trends through a global stocktake.
The Transparency Accelerator team employs a learning-by-doing approach to improve the technical and institutional capacity of partner countries by working alongside developing country experts as they prepare their GHG inventories and BTRs.
To help developing countries build institutional and technical capacity, EPA is currently expanding its suite of GHG inventory and BTR reporting tools and supporting bilateral technical assistance through the Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator initiative.
National GHG Inventories
Developing a national GHG inventory is a key first step toward understanding and managing national emissions and sinks. EPA works internationally to build capacity for GHG inventories by implementing projects that support countries working to establish, maintain, and improve sustainable national inventory systems and prepare high-quality GHG inventory reports on a regular basis. A complete and transparent national GHG inventory is an essential tool for understanding current emissions and past trends, projecting future emissions, and identifying sectors for cost-effective mitigation opportunities. A national inventory is also a required reporting element under the ETF.
NDC Tracking
The Paris Agreement Transparency Accelerator team provides technical assistance to developing countries to:
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Improve capacity to estimate GHG emissions and sinks, including quantification of GHG emission reductions and enhancement of sinks, to support tracking progress in meeting NDC targets.
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Support identification of indicators for assessing progress in meeting NDC targets, and development of data, methods, and systems for tracking these indicators.
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Support tracking of the implementation of policies and measures used to achieve NDC targets, and quantify the GHG emission reduction impacts of these mitigation actions.
Projections of GHG Emissions and Sinks
The EPA is partnering with the Joint Global Change Research Institute (JGCRI) at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to support developing countries in estimating and reporting projections of national GHG emissions and sinks. EPA and PNNL offer collaborative support to developing countries through:
Regional community building – EPA and PNNL can leverage international expert networks to help facilitate conversations between researchers and policymakers across countries. This collaboration can promote the sharing of modeling capabilities and lessons learned while strengthening research communities and the capacity of government experts through virtual or in-person workshops.
Technical assistance for projections of GHG emissions and sinks – EPA experts and PNNL researchers can offer technical assistance in reporting GHG projections in BTRs, which can include assistance in developing representations of mitigation actions, collaborating on model and scenario development, and offering training.
Other Initiatives and Resources
U.S. GHG Emissions and Removals
Other U.S. Government Capacity Building Initiatives
- Global Methane Initiative
- SilvaCarbon
- USAID’s Global Climate Change Program
- NOAA Blue Carbon Inventory Project
Other Resources
- Climate Transparency Platform
- GEF Funding and the Capacity Building Initiative for Transparency (CBIT)
- Partnership on Transparency in the Paris Agreement
- IPCC Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories
- UNFCCC GHG Support for Developing Countries
- UNFCCC Inventory Training Program
Questions
For questions or comments regarding EPA's capacity building initiative for national GHG inventories, email us.