Setting a Global Standard for Greenhouse Gas Accounting by Local Governments

ICLEI is pleased to release version 1 of the Local Government Operations Protocol (LGOP). This protocol, aimed at local government operations, is the first of a two-step process to write the official Protocol for GHG inventory for all U.S. local governments. Step two will be to release the Local Community Protocol slated for summer 2009.

The New Official Standard

LGOP is an unprecedented collaboration between ICLEI, the California Air Resources Board, the California Climate Action Registry, and The Climate Registry. With the nation’s leading organizations in local GHG accounting protocol collaborating on a single protocol, LGOP is now the official standard for all local governments in the United States who wish to prepare and report GHG emissions.

The LGOP has been formally approved by the boards of ICLEI USA, the California Climate Action Registry and the California Air Resources Board. The Climate Registry strongly supports the LGOP and will introduce it to their Board for formal adoption at their annual meeting in June 2009.

By following the LGOP, local governments can be confident that their work will adhere to the latest in GHG accounting, and can be sure that their efforts will be compatible with programs by the collaborating partners, and with any other entity that adopts the Protocol for its programs. ICLEI has adopted LGOP as the basis for its Five Milestones for Climate Mitigation.

ICLEI is striving for the fullest possible alignment with established protocols to ensure the final LGOP captures the most relevant expertise and sets an informed global standard for local governments executing climate protection work.

A Thorough Development Process

The partners created LGOP through a comprehensive stakeholder process that spanned six months and included hundreds of collaborators. The process included a number of technical working groups, an advisory group, and a round of public review. To learn more about who participated and about the six-month process, please read the acknowledgements section of the LGOP and download the LGOP Development Process Report.

Local governments wishing to learn how to apply the LGOP should contact their regional ICLEI office.

International Emissions Analysis Protocol

In addition to the LGOP, ICLEI is facilitating an international local government GHG protocol project called International Emissions Analysis Protocol (IEAP). As local governments all over the world continue to rapidly join the climate protection movement, the need for common conventions and a standardized approach to quantifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is more pressing than ever. ICLEI has been developing this guidance since the inception of its Cities for Climate Protection Campaign™ in 1993. ICLEI has recently formalized version 1 of the IEAP as a means to set a common framework for all local government worldwide.

The Relationship Between LGOP and IEAP

IEAP is a broad framework protocol for organizing and accounting for emissions. It is a much shorter document because it does not specify data and coefficients to be used for a particular country. Country-specific coefficients can be found in the IEAP Country Supplement. The LGOP is the U.S. Country Supplement to the IEAP, and so U.S. local governments need only to refer to the LGOP. In the future, more Country Supplements will be prepared and placed. IEAP ensures that globally each country supplement follows a consistent framework.

Version 1 of the IEAP incorporates changes suggested during the public comment period that ended in March 2008.

Download the version 1 IEAP.