Highlights of the 62nd meeting of the CDM Executive Board

For the full report of the meeting see <http://cdm.unfccc.int/EB/index.html>. Marrakesh, Morocco, 15 July 2011 –- Meeting in the city where the rules of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) were agreed some 10 years ago, the CDM Executive Board approved two important guidelines that should allow low-greenhouse-gas emitting countries and underrepresented countries to benefit more from the mechanism. The first, guidelines on standardized baselines, allow countries to calculate the typical emissions for an entire sector and create a list of technologies or measures that automatically qualify for approval because of their ability to reduce emissions below that baseline level. For example, a stove recognized as being more efficient than the regular, higher emitting stove might automatically qualify for approval. The second, known informally as guidelines on suppressed demand, allow project developers to assume a level of development in underrepresented countries that would lead to emissions, to be avoided. For example, a project that installs an advanced water treatment facility in a country with no water treatment facilities might earn credits. In other words, it allows for the introduction of clean technology without first having to suffer through dirty technologies. “The result of these two guidelines should be a clearer, more straightforward path to project development and approval. It’s reasonable to expect that this will lead to life-improving projects in countries and regions that have so far missed out on the benefits of the CDM,” said CDM Board Chair Martin Hession. Another important piece of work adopted at the meeting, modalities for direct communication with CDM stakeholders, will enhance private and public sector interaction with the Board, add clarity to the regulatory process, and could expedite the answering of questions that otherwise might slow the vetting of projects. At the meeting, the Board considered the question of whether CDM’s rules and procedures ensuring stakeholder consultation are being followed and whether they are adequate. The Board will launch a call for public inputs on local and global stakeholder consultation. It also asked the UNFCCC secretariat to analyse how the adequacy of stakeholder consultation is validated by designated operational entities (accredited third-party certifiers). “The CDM is evolving and improving, thanks in large part to the engagement by the private and public sector. These decisions represent a significant improvement in terms of transparency and stakeholder engagement, to what was already a very open process,” said Mr. Hession. At the meeting, the Board also continued its consideration of a draft revision of the baseline and monitoring methodology for projects that destroy HFC-23, a potent greenhouse gas and by-product in the manufacture of refrigerant HCFC-22. Following a report by its Methodologies Panel, the Board decided in December 2010 to put the methodology (AM0001) on hold and to enhance its stringency.