Numbers of Projects
World-Wide Registered or in the Pipeline
at Over 4,000 up from 60 in 2004 Says UNEP
Hydro, Wind and other
'Traditional' Renewables Dominate but Some
Geothermal, Energy Efficiency and Home Lighting
Projects Coming Through
Poznan, 11 December
2008— Wind and geothermal power projects
alongside ones promoting energy efficiency
and even the preservation of onions are
emerging across the globe courtesy of the
United Nation-brokered carbon markets.
A year-end snapshot
of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
of the Kyoto Protocol- the UN emission-reduction
treaty- shows that more than 4,200 projects
are up and running, or in various phases
of the pipeline.
Leading are medium and
small-scale hydroelectric projects; followed
by biomass energy, wind power and electricity
from industrial waste heat.
However the CDM is also
now triggering interest in a wider range
of renewable energy projects. These include
solar and geothermal power and one 250 MW
tidal project in the Republic of Korea.
One novel project is emerging
from Niger where an estimated 60 per cent
of the national onion crop can be lost,
leading to methane emissions as the vegetables
rot.
The idea is to use solar
dryers and other systems to preserve the
onions so they do not rot in storage or
on the way to market.
Lars Appelquist of UNEP's
Risoe Centre in Denmark, which has compiled
the end of year snap shot and who has been
working with the Niger onion farmers to
access the CDM, said: "Some 3,000 tonnes
of onions, produced by small farmers can
be lost annually".
"Support under
the CDM raises the prospect of not only
cutting greenhouse gas emissions but more
than doubling incomes of onions farmers
by boosting exports by cutting post harvest
losses. It is a rather unusual but small
example of the co-benefits arising from
so many CDM projects".
Global CDM Situation
The snap shot covers
the years from 2004 up to November 2008
at the global, regional and national scale.
Brazil, China, India
and Mexico continue to access the lion's
share of the projects with a total of 3,218
of which 1,557 are for China and 1,135 for
India.
But regions and countries
once on the periphery of such schemes are
beginning to access the environmental, economic
and development benefits, many for the first
time.
Indeed if the numbers
for China and India are excluded, the Asia
and Pacific region now has close to 550
projects up from five in 2004.
And if the numbers for
Brazil and Mexico are removed from the evaluation
for Latin America and the Caribbean, totals
here stand at nearly 290 up from 19 four
years ago.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary
General and UNEP Executive Director, said:
"The CDM and the carbon markets as
a whole are one of the great success stories
of international cooperative action on climate
change. The challenge now is to streamline
it and overcome some of the hurdles that
are keeping back projects in areas such
as the building sector and forestry".
"By 2012 we estimate
that over 8,000 CDM projects may be up and
running or in the pipeline generating financial
flows from North to South of well over $30
billion," he added.
The calculation is based
on the CDM generating an estimated 1.6 billion
Certified Emission Reduction" carbon
credits worth $20 each.
"In doing so the
CDM is not only emerging as one key and
creative instrument for combating climate
change but an important stimulus package
to developing country economies," said
Mr Steiner.
Maryam Niamir-Fuller,
Director of the UNEP's Global Environment
Facility Division, said today that action
was underway to try and boost the number
of projects under the CDM that involve afforestation
and reforestation and that capture not only
carbon but 'co-benefits' such as improvements
for biodiversity, soils and adaptation to
climate change.
"Today we are announcing
a project, in partnership with others, aimed
at streamlining the methodology for assessing
the carbon of such projects. This could
be the key to unlocking the potential of
the CDM to help re-carbonize degraded ecosystems,"
she said.
The other partners include
WWF, the University of Michigan, the University
of Colorado and World Soil Information.
Some Regional and National
Highlights
Africa
While the number of
registered or proposed projects in Africa
remains small, the CDM is now being glimpsed
across almost all countries albeit at a
low level.
In 2004, only two countries
across the entire Continent were accessing
the CDM—Morocco and South Africa. In 2008,
a large range of African countries now have
projects up and running or in the pipeline.
The country with the
largest slice is South Africa with just
under 30 registered or in the pipeline,
followed by Egypt; 12 and Morroco with nine.
Renewable energy projects
at close to 40 per cent top Africa's access
to the CDM followed by a quarter of projects
in the methane reduction area.
Nigeria is likely to
generate the greatest financial flows from
just four projects worth, if all are approved,
some $108 million annually under the $20
assumption; followed by South Africa at
some $97 million and Egypt at over $60 million.
Middle East
The Middle East had
zero projects in 2004 and only one in 2005.
The year end snapshot indicates that a total
of 54 are either registered or in the pipeline
with the United Arab Emirates emerging with
13 from zero projects in 2007.
Israel has the highest
number registered or in the pipeline at
33 which annual CERs could be worth $72
million a year, followed by Qatar with one
registered project potentially worth $50
million annually.
Overall the current
portfolio of CDM projects in the Middle
East could be worth close to $170 million
a year under the $20 assumption for CERs.
Eastern Europe and Central
Asia
The 11 countries in
this group currently have the lowest number
of CDM projects registered or in the pipeline:
42.
In 2004 these countries
also had zero CDM access however since 2006
the situation has been improving if slightly
with 14 projects then; 29 in 2007 and 42
by November this year.
Armenia tops the list
with 8 registered or in the pipeline followed
by Cyprus and Uzbekistan with 7 and Georgia
with 6. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have one
each.
The projects are expected
to generate just over $80 million.
Latin America and the
Caribbean
Some 814 CDM projects
are registered or in the pipeline with the
figures dominated by Brazil, close to 330
projects followed by Mexico with close to
200.
However, other countries
are picking up. For example Chile had just
five projects in 2004 but today has well
over 60 registered or in the pipeline. Colombia
had zero four years ago and now has 36.
Guyana has just one
and Cuba and Jamaica two while Paraguay
has four and the Dominican Republic and
Uruguay five apiece.
Over 50 per cent of
projects registered or in the pipeline are
classed as renewables with over a fifth
in the agricultural sector including many
tackling emissions from animal wastes.
Landfill gas accounts
for over 14 per cent and over five per cent
are in the area of energy efficiency. Only
just over one per cent are in forestry.
The value of the CERs,
based on the $20/CER assumption, could reach
well over 1.5 billion of which close to
$650 million generated in Brazil; around
$300 million, Mexico and well over $100
million, Argentina.
Asia and the Pacific
Close to 3,250 CDM projects
are registered or in the pipeline that could
be worth over $9.5 billion of which some
$6.5 billion relate to China.
Renewables dominate
the regional CDM picture with close to 70
per cent of the projects followed by energy
efficiency projects on both the 'supply
and the demand-side' at 18 per cent.
Projects to cut emissions
of hydrochloroflurocarbons (HFCs) and oxides
of nitrogen amount to two per cent of the
projects but the number have flattened out
indicating that this mitigation measure
under the CDM may be coming to an end.
After China and India,
Malaysia comes third with 145 projects registered
or in the pipeline up from one in 2004 followed
by Indonesia with close to 100 including
geothermal.
The countries with the
least projects are Fiji, the Peoples Democratic
Republic of Laos and Papua New Guinea with
just one apiece.
Least Developed Countries
Among these countries
there are only 39 projects registered or
in the pipeline of which 16 are in the Asia
and Pacific region and 23 in Africa.
The potential value
of the annual CERs are close to $135 million
with Bhutan estimated to generate the most
revenue of over $75 million. Uganda, Cambodia
and Bangladesh have the most in terms of
numbers with eight, five and four respectively.
Programmatic CDM
One relative new development
of the CDM is called programmatic in which
a large number of 'small' projects are bundled
together to make a bigger project proposal
that may be more attractive to investors
and better in terms of economies of scale.
Ten of these, all of
which are in the pipeline, are part of the
year-end snap shot. These include a municipal
waste composting one for Uganda; an efficient
light bulb project for households in Mexico
and an over 11MW solar household system
project for Bangladesh.
Notes to Editors
The year-end snap shot including tables
and graphs can be found at www.unep.org
UNEP Risoe Centre www.uneprisoe.org
For More Information Please Contact Nick
Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson/Head of Media
Countries, Cities, Companies
and Organizations Pledge Climate Neutrality
at UN Climate Conference in Poznan
As nearly 200 governments are meeting to
move forward a new global deal to address
climate change at the UN climate conference,
an increasing number of countries, cities,
companies and organizations are committing
to a low-carbon future by joining the Climate
Neutral Network (CN Net).
The CN Net -- established
by the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP) -- brings together countries, cities,
companies and organizations that have set
some of the world’s most ambitious greenhouse
gas emissions reduction targets.
UN Under-Secretary-General
and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner
said: “From a hip hotel which blends Shanghai’s
tradition and modernity to Thailand’s largest
supermarket chain to the biggest outdoor
music event that communicates the environmental
message to the global audience, the new
Climate Neutral Network participants bring
the low-carbon vision for the future to
millions of people.”
“I am also pleased to
welcome the Pacific island nation of Niue,
which is joining the CN Net in the country
category. For many small island developing
States like Niue climate neutrality is more
than just a concept – it is a matter of
survival. Finally, the two cities coming
on board – Slough in the UK and Waitakere
in New Zealand – exemplify that addressing
climate change is part and parcel of urban
sustainability,” he added.
Are you climate NIUE-tral?
The Pacific island nation
of Niue is the new country coming on board
the Climate Neutral Network. It is hoping
to become carbon neutral in the near future.
Niue’s own annual greenhouse gas emissions
are approximately 0.003 million metrictonnes
for a population of about 1,700. The Government
of Niue focuses in particular on the transport
and energy sectors as the major contributors
of greenhouse gas emissions.
It promotes the use
of energy saving appliances and compact
fluorescent light bulbs, and, in the case
of transport, enforces maximum speed limits
and encourages carpooling. It also works
to cut down carbon emissions through better
waste management and harnessing renewable
energy resources.
Slough steps to climate
neutrality
A historic stopping
point for coaches travelling between London
and Bath, Slough today has a population
of nearly 120,000 and is one of UK’s most
culturally diverse communities. The Slough
Borough Council’s strategy includes having
all public transport and council vehicles
running on cleaner fuel and cutting its
CO2 emissions by one-fifth in the next 20
years.
Waitakere is New Zealand’s
fifth largest city representing nearly five
percent of the country’s population. The
city’s Action Plan on Climate Change and
Energy targets stabilizing per capita greenhouse
gas emissions by 2010 and reducing them
by 80 percent by 2051.
In climate neutral company
Companies and organizations
big and small are joining the Climate Neutral
Network. The eleven new participants are
being announced today in Poznan are:
URBN Hotels, China’s
first carbon neutral hotel;
Tesco Lotus, Thailand’s largest supermarket
chain;
Live Earth, organizer of large-scale environmental
music & entertainment events;
Ementor Group, Scandinavia’s leading IT
provider;
First Climate Group, Europe’s leading carbon
asset management company;
Biosphere Capital, carbon trading, technology
and finance company;
GHG, carbon management company working in
Portuguese-speaking countries;
Aeris Futuro Foundation, which created Poland’s
first CO2 calculator;
IDEA, Paraguay’s Institute for Environmental
Law and Economics;
Rios Tropicales, a Costa Rican eco-adventure
company; and
Yachay Wasi, a Peruvian NGO planting one
million native trees in the Andes.
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson and Head
of Media
Notes to Editors
Information about the participants
URBN Hotels, based in
Shanghai, prides itself on being the fist
carbon neutral hotel in China. The hotel
is implementing a wide range of measures
to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions,
including water based air conditioning system,
low voltage lights and electronic equipment
which is automatically turned off when guests
leave their rooms. An ivy ‘green wall’ in
the hotel’s courtyard increases thermal
insulation, air purification, carbon sequestration
and acoustic absorption. Ninety percent
of materials used in URBN Hotels are recycled,
including wood panels from Shanghai’s old
buildings.
With over 450 stores
and 28 million customers per month, Tesco
Lotus is Thailand’s largest supermarket
chain, which has recently opened the first
“green store” in Asia. Tesco Lotus is committed
to at least halving carbon emissions from
its existing operations by 2020.
Live Earth is a US-based
organization which leverages the power of
music and entertainment to focus the world's
attention on the issues and solutions of
climate change. In 2007, Live Earth staged
a 24-hour music event across all seven continents,
featuring 150 of the world’s leading artists
and billions of fans worldwide participating.
From planning to execution, the organizers
placed the highest priority on ensuring
sustainability of these massive simultaneous
events. Successfully achieving carbon neutrality
in 2007, Live Earth developed the Green
Event Guidelines, a set of approved solutions
to producing carbon-free and sustainable
live events, which account for all elements
of production from waste to power to transportation.
The Ementor Group is
the leading provider of IT infrastructure
products and services in the Nordic and
Baltic region. It has pioneered a recycling
scheme for servers, laptops and other IT
equipment which is successfully marketed
in Denmark, Norway and Sweden and soon to
be implemented in Finland. The company has
already cut its greenhouse gas emissions
by one-third and expects to be climate neutral
by 2010.
First Climate Group,
based in Germany, is one of Europe’s leading
carbon asset management companies and an
investment advisor to the Post 2012 Carbon
Credit Fund established by the European
Investment Bank. The company minimizes its
own carbon footprint from travel and energy
consumption, and offsets unavoidable emissions
through verified emission reductions.
Biosphere Capital, which
operates from its headquarters in Singapore,
is an international advisory, project management
and trading company in the areas of clean
and renewable energy, specializing in emissions
reduction technologies and finance. The
company believes that it is possible to
achieve exceptional financial returns in
the context of the low-emissions economy.
Based in Portugal, GHG
is a company that promotes climate change
solutions through carbon management, including
mitigation, offsetting and certification
under the “e)mission” brand. GHG works with
Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde,
Sao Tome and Principe, and Guinea Bissau
to help them develop clean energy technologies
with carbon finance.
Working under the motto
“Let’s create a climate for the future”,
Polish NGO Aeris Futuro Foundation catalyzed
the planting of 450,000 trees across the
country. The Foundation also developed the
first CO2 calculator in Poland to measure
carbon footprint and identify the number
of trees needed to offset its effects.
IDEA – Insituto de Derecho
y Economia Ambiental (Institute for Environmental
Law and Economics) – in Paraguay became
climate neutral in 2008. In addition to
reducing energy consumption in the office,
IDEA supports a project in Brazil which
works with communities to substitute firewood
by rice husks.
Rios Tropicales is an
eco-adventure company that operates throughout
Costa Rica. The company’s Rainforest Eco-lodge
was built in 1991 entirely in accordance
with green construction principles and is
powered by 100 percent renewable energy.
The company is also actively involved in
reforestation and watershed protection projects
across the country.
Yachay Wasi means ‘house
of learning’ in Quechua, the language of
the indigenous peoples of Peru, descendants
of the Inca civilization. The NGO carries
out reforestation projects in the spectacular
natural areas surrounding Cuzco in the Peruvian
Andes. In December 2008, at the beginning
of the rainy season, Yachay Wasi is launching
‘A Million Native Trees’ campaign.
