Table of Contents

Reporting Tips & Updates

1. FINAL Reporting Extensions Granted Only Through September 1, 2010
2. Upcoming October 31 Verification Deadline
3. Updated CA Electricity Emission Factors
4. Offset Your Emission Inventory with Climate Reserve Tonnes (CRTs) and Publicly Disclose in CARROT
5. Verification Bodies Must be ARB or ANSI Accredited
6. Register to Report 2010 Emissions to The Climate Registry by September 1, 2010 to Receive Discounted Membership Fee

Policy Updates

1. California Policy Update: ARB Announces Adoption of Climate Action Reserve Offset Protocols to State Cap and Trade Program

Save the Date: Upcoming Events

1. THE LAST Reporting Orientation: August 25, 10:00 AM PDT
2. The Climate Registry Regional Forum 2011: Seattle

Reporting Tips & Updates

1. Reporting Extensions Granted Through September 1, 2010

This is the final year of reporting to the California Climate Action Registry and we will make CARROT “read only” at the end of 2010. The 2009 emissions reporting deadline (June 30) has passed. Your organization should be in the beginning stages of the verification process. However, if you are still working on reporting your emissions, please submit a Reporting Extension Request Form to [email protected].

If you have any questions regarding the reporting or verification of your 2009 emissions, please contact Joy Cernac at 213-785-1230 or [email protected].

2. Upcoming October 31 Verification Deadline

The October 31 verification deadline is less than three months from today. Please note that supplying your verification body with proper, easy-to-follow documentation and making necessary revisions to your reports in a timely manner will make the verification process more efficient and may also reduce verification costs.

Please make sure your verification body is ANSI or ARB certified by visiting our website for an updated list of verification bodies.

If you have yet to secure a verifier, please feel free to use our Requests for Proposals (RFP) Bulletin Board to post your RFPs for verification services. Here are a number of http://www.caclimateregistry.org/resources to help you select and contract with a verification body:

Sample RFP
Sample Contract
Sample NDA

As this is the final year of reporting, extensions will not be granted after December 15. If you have any questions regarding verification and/or expect to have difficulty in meeting the October 31 verification deadline, please email us at [email protected] or call 213-891-1444.

3. Updated CA Electricity Emission Factors

If your organization is still finalizing your CARROT report or if you are making any revisions during the verification process, please use the following 2008 California Registry utility emission factors to report your California emissions from electricity.

If your utility’s name is not listed above, you may be able to find an older reported emission factor in our historical CA utility emission factor list.

4. Disclosure Statement to Use When Offsetting Your Emissions Inventory with Climate Reserve Tonnes (CRTs)

In order to maximize benefit to the environment, organizations should first reduce emissions wherever possible through energy efficiency, equipment upgrades and other best practice opportunities. After all these steps have been taken, the California Registry encourages all members to offset their GHG inventories. Offsetting remaining emissions allows your organization to become carbon neutral. One high quality offset option is the Climate Reserve Tonne (CRT), issued under the California Registry’s parent organization, the Climate Action Reserve.

You may purchase CRTs through the following two options:

1. Purchase offsets by signing up for a Reserve account: Sign up for a “Client” account in order to purchase wholesale quantities of CRTs, publicly retire them through the Reserve software and offset your California Registry inventory.
2. Purchase offsets through a CRT Retailer: Offset your greenhouse gas emissions by purchasing and retiring small quantities of CRTs through a CRT retailer.

Once you have purchased offsets, please include the following offset disclosure statement in the “Emission Reduction Projects” text box on the first page of the “Optional Reporting” tab in CARROT before submitting the report for verification.

“[Some or all] of the emissions included in this CARROT report have been offset using Climate Reserve Tonnes (CRTs). These CRTs have been verified to the rigor and integrity of the Climate Action Reserve program and represent a real, permanent, additional, verifiable and enforceable reduction or removal of GHG emissions from the atmosphere. [Amount of CRTs] have been purchased and retired for the purpose of offsetting this inventory.”

If purchasing a different type of carbon offsets, please include similar language disclosing the offset purchase. This statement allows your organization to communicate to the public its commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and shows your support for the high standards of environmental integrity and transparency within offsets.

Please contact [email protected] if you have questions about CRTs or the Climate Action Reserve.

6. Register to Report 2010 Emissions to The Climate Registry by September 1, 2010 to Receive Discounted Membership Fee

If your organization has not done so already, please consider continuing your environmental leadership through emissions reporting to The Climate Registry. Please note that The Climate Registry’s fees are increasing in price as of September 1, 2010. If you register to report your 2010 emissions by September 1, 2010, you will be able to join at the lower cost price. To view the reduced cost fees or to become a member of The Climate Registry, view The Registry’s Statement of Intent form.

Additionally, to transfer your CARROT emissions data to The Climate Registry, please note that the following fees apply:

1 to 3 years of data = 25 percent of your Annual Membership Fee
4+ years of data = 50 percent of your Annual Membership Fee

Please feel free to discuss aspects of the transition with any of the following Registry staff:

Denise Sheehan, VP Government and Regional Affairs
[email protected]
518-608-6421

Alex Carr, Regional Director
[email protected]
778-340-8837

Anja Gilbert, Program Associate
[email protected]
213-542-0296

We look forward to supporting your transition to The Climate Registry!

Policy Updates

1. California Policy Update: ARB Staff Proposes Adoption of Climate Action Reserve Offset Protocols to State Cap and Trade Program

On July 29, California Air Resources Board (ARB) staff released new details regarding the proposed design of the offset system for the state’s cap-and-trade program. In addition to recognizing the role of offsets in reducing the cost of compliance in a cap-and-trade program and the importance of quality offsets in maintaining environmental integrity, ARB staff proposed to:

• utilize an existing third-party offsets structure, such as the Reserve, rather than build a new structure from scratch
• adopt four of the Reserve’s protocols that address forestry, manure management digesters, urban forestry and ozone depleting substances
• recognize the Reserve’s offset credits, Climate Reserve Tonnes, that have been issued under these protocols
• consider adopting additional Reserve protocols

The full statement issued by ARB staff is available online.

Save The Date: Upcoming Events

1. THE LAST Reporting Orientation: August 25 10:00 AM PDT

The California Registry will be hosting its last Reporting Orientation webinar on Wednesday, August 25 at 10:00 AM PDT. The orientation will cover the basics of reporting and provide a demonstration of CARROT. The webinar is recommended for anyone new to the emissions reporting process and for members in need of a refresher on using CARROT to report 2009 emissions inventories.

August 25 Reporting Orientation – REGISTER

Please contact the Member Services team with any questions regarding reporting or CARROT at 213-891-1444 or [email protected].

2. The Climate Registry Regional Forum 2011: Seattle

The Climate Registry is excited to announce its Western Climate Policy forum scheduled for March 14-15 in Seattle, Washington. The Registry’s second annual forum series examines climate policy and tools in a regional context. By bringing together climate leaders from government, business and environment, this forum provides a unique venue for thoughtful exchange on climate issues across state and provincial lines. Attendees will have the opportunity to convene with other experts to gather insights and understand the carbon management tools that will help their businesses thrive in a carbon economy. The climate policy forum is a day-long event followed by Members-only workshops the following day. Transitioning members are eligible to receive the Member rate when registering for the forum.

Seattle, March 14-15, 2011

Registration for the forum is now open.  If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, please contact Anja Gilbert