<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/australian-coal-mine-emissions-accounting-trick-could-be-hiding-more-than-10-million-tonnes-a-year/>
"Australia’s coal mines could be hiding over 10 million tonnes of CO₂-e per
year. That’s according to a new study by energy insights firm Reputex, which
looked into recent shifts in voluntary emissions reporting requirements for
open cut coal mines, in an effort to assess potential short term price risks
for Australia’s carbon credit market.
The study sought to assess the nation-wide impact of an emissions reporting
rule change that enables open cut mines to select whether they would like to
report their methane pollution using a state-based emissions factor, or a
mine-specific estimate, led by the mining company.
This indicates that officially reported open cut coal mine emissions decreased
by 65 – 70% after switching to site-specific estimates, and that total coal
mine emissions would be 10.6 Mt CO₂-e higher if mining operators reported their
emissions using state-based emission factors.
The report also highlights that this reporting shift may be a significant
reason why there is such a large discrepancy between officially reported
emissions, and satellite estimates of Australia’s coal mines.
It builds on an analysis conducted earlier this year by Ember, which found that
greenhouse gas emissions reporting at individual mines have decreased by up to
1 million tonnes per year as a result of a shift to company-led estimates.
Both reports noted that these company-led estimates are conducted by the mining
operators, without the need for third party verification or transparency. They
also highlight that a result of these reporting changes, many open cut mines
would be eligible for credits under the revised Safeguard Mechanism."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
