e)mission news
The Vice-presidential department initiates a strategy defined through the 2008-2010 Sustainability Plan, with the objective of being an emission neutral organization.
With the aim of contributing to the decrease of the climate change effects and to encourage active policies with “zero emissions”, the Vice-presidential department of Generalitat of Catalonia initiated a carbon management strategy to enhance the Greenhouse Gas Emission (GE) reduction generated by its activity, and offset all inevitable emissions during the 2008-2010 period. This way, through lavola e)mission services, a company that represents the e)mission brand in Spain and Andorra, the Vice-presidential department begins its journey to be a CO2 emission neutral organization.
The first step to accomplish this process consisted in the realization of an annual inventory of GHG emissions from the Vice-presidential department, reporting to 2008, 2009 and 2010, according to the ISO 14064:2006-1 methodology and taking into account the Guía Práctica para el cálculo de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernader, a document edited by the Generalitat of Catalonia, showing interest to join the Voluntary Agreements Program in the short term, which is promoted by the Catalonia Factory of Climate Change.
The boundary of the GHG inventory included emissions from the building at Via Laietana number 14, Casa Canonges (where the Department of Foreign Affairs is) and the Avinguda de Sarrià number 30 (where the Council for Sustainable Development is); and also the emissions from travels of the Department elements, during working hours.
After measuring the 2008-2010 emissions, a strategy for annual emissions reduction was prepared, through the definition of guidelines for reducing them. This initiative is covered by the 2008-2010 Sustainability Plan of the Vice-presidential Department which among multiple objectives defines the following: develop good environmental practices in the Department offices; promote efficiency and reduce electricity consumption in the buildings; and measure, reduce and offset the Departments GHG emissions.
Finally, all unavoidable emissions were offset through high quality carbon credits originated by projects in the e)mission portfolio, reassuring that the emission reduction project will mean an asset for the Vice-presidential Department, in a way that besides reducing emissions, it will also take a social and/or environmental benefit to the development of the region where it is implemented.
The Vice-presidential Department chose to acquire credits generated by projects implemented in priority territories or considered preferential by the Catalonia Agency of Cooperation to Development. In this case the credits originated from the GISI: Guaraí, Itabira and Santa Izabel - Ceramics Brazil project, where the replacement of fuel used in ceramic industry for biomass extracted from sawing and wood waste from reforested areas is being done.
The credits acquisition was carried out through e)mission, reassuring that the offset is made taking into account leading international standards and the rules set by the Executive Council of Professionals from the Clean Development Mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This offset allowed Vice-presidential Department to be awarded with the e)mission neutral certification for the year 2010.
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