SEAP/SECAP should be developed on the basis of reliable information related to energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in the territory of local self-government bodies. Due to this, at the initial stage a comprehensive assessment of the current (baseline) situation and structures should be made. The assessment starts with determination of the level of energy consumption in respective sectors of the city’s/town’s economy and development of the Baseline Emission Inventory (BEI), determination of the volume of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission related to energy consumption in the baseline year.
The BEI and further inventory-making of CO2 emission (if available) constitute the main tool allowing local authorities to determine priority measures and efficiency of the measures implemented by them, aimed at reduction of greenhouse gas emission.
Development of the BEI constitutes an obligatory stage of SEAP/SECAP preparation and the key aspect in the performance of commitments under the Covenant. The Inventory should be included into the full version of SEAP/SECAP officially approved by local authorities.
The main characteristics of the BEI are provided below:
- The BEI should reflect local situation, that is should be based on local data on energy consumption/production and other information necessary to prepare the inventory. Assessments and estimations based on national or regional means will not reflect the real situation locally (in the city/town), since in most cases they are characteristic of a specific territory position. The inventory estimated on the basis of such data will also not constitute an important reference point for the assessment of the efficiency of efforts taken by local authorities to achieve their goals in the field of СО2 emission reduction.
- Methodological approaches and sources of the data used in the estimations should not change for several years. That means that the methodology used for the BEI development should also be used for further inventory-making measures to be taken on a regular basis for the sake of monitoring the progress in emission reduction (Emission Inventory Monitoring).
- The BEI should include at least the sectors where the local authorities intend to take measures aimed at achievement of their emission reduction goals, that is the sectors that constitute important sources of СО2 emission (a detailed description of the sectors included in the BEI is provided in the second part of the SEAP Guidebook, see below).
- The BEI should contain reliable information or at least common-sense vision of reality (that is, if possible, most objectively reflect the current situation).
- The process of input data collection, the sources of data and calculation methodology for the BEI should be duly documented (that can also be done within SEAP/SECAP, or, at least, the necessary data should be preserved in the local authority’s documents).
- Signatories from Eastern Partnership countries are insistently recommended to include monitoring of energy costs into the BEI as well as into further inventory-making activities.
More detailed information on the BEI preparation can be founded in the SEAP Guidebook for the cities/towns of Eastern Partnership and Central Asia, Part I (Section 2) and Part II – Baseline Emission Inventory, developed by the Joint Research Centre in 2014.
