By Giulia Celli and Ibrahim Syed
The 2017 calendar year is the first year of the phased expansion to the Government of Canada's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) for industrial facilities in Canada. Prior to the expansion, the GHGRP required reporting of basic information, such as emissions data only, and had a 50 kilotonnes (kt) threshold. For the link to the Environment and Climate Change Canada click here.
The Phase I (2017 data year) changes in the reporting requirements are:
- The reporting threshold has been lowered to 10 kt. All facilities that emit 10 kt or more of GHGs in carbon dioxide equivalent units (CO2 eq) per year will be required to submit a report.
- All facilities engaged in carbon capture, transport and geological storage (CCTS), regardless of their annual GHG emissions, will be required to submit a report covering CCTS activities for 2017 and relevant years for the period 2014 to 2016.
- Expanded data and methodological requirements will apply to manufacturers of lime, cement, iron and steel, and aluminum; and to facilities engaged in CCTS.
- Removal of some reporting requirements (for example, methane from iron & steel sector)
- For those facilities subject to expanded federal requirements in the four sectors (cement, lime, iron & steel and aluminum), and who already report to provincial programs based on the WCI framework (British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec), will be given the option to complete the expanded GHGRP reporting, or alternatively, these facilities may submit their provincial GHG reportFootnote6 for compliance with the 2017 GHGRP requirements.
- Provisionally, facilities subject to the expanded federal requirements regarding CCTS and already reporting similar data to Alberta and Saskatchewan will be offered the option to submit their provincial report for compliance with these GHGRP requirements.
- Facilities in the remaining provinces will be required to complete the extended federal reporting, as their provincial reporting programs do not collect data that meet the expanded federal requirements. This includes facilities in Alberta and Saskatchewan above the 10kt threshold engaged in activities other than CCTS.
In Phase II (date unknown), the petroleum refining and electricity generation sectors will be subject to expanded requirements and mandatory methods. Phase III will affect additional sectors, which are yet to be determined.
Below is a workflow to determine if your facility needs to take any action or the appropriate course of action for Phase I (2017 data year).
For the link to the Environment and Climate Change Canada click here. For any questions, please contact Giulia Celli at gcelli@ortech.ca or Ibrahim Syed at ISyed@ortech.ca .
