Database to help Abu Dhabi assess emission levels

The Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD) is organising a workshop to familiarise entities concerned with greenhouse gas emissions estimation tools and methods in line with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines. Representatives of government entities at the local and federal level responsible for overseeing key emitting sectors — namely energy, industrial processes and product use, land use, land-use change and forestry, agriculture and waste — are attending the two-week capacity-building workshop, inaugurated on Sunday. Strategies The Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory Project was launched by EAD in 2011 with the aim of compiling an inventory database on greenhouse gas emissions for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The database will help the Abu Dhabi government develop strategies to assess and monitor the levels of emissions as well as the ‘sinks' that absorb greenhouse gases such as managed forests. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2012. The results and reports will be shared with all the stake-holders. Kyoto Protocol The project will compile data on gases specified by the Kyoto Protocol. These include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulphur hexafluoride, hydro fluorocarbons and per fluorocarbons. Dr Jaber Al Jaberi, deputy secretary general of EAD, inaugurated the workshop and said: "We launched the GHG Inventory project to support the Abu Dhabi government's vision for excellence and leadership in the various environmental issues at global, regional and local levels. "It was also launched to support UAE's efforts to fulfil its commitment to UNFCCC [United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change]."