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IES & Climate Change

Why Conduct A Greenhouse Gas Emissions Assessment?

Bilan Carbone^® : instrument and methodology

The Territorial Climate & Energy Plans

Bilan Carbone^®:
A greenhouse gas emissions accounting
instrument and methodology

Presentation

Characteristics

Scope

Methodology

Projects Examples

1. PRESENTATION

We are bringing to China a performant and highly-developed carbon accounting instrument: the Bilan Carbone^® methodology.

Bilan Carbone^® is a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions accounting model that is being researched and improved since 2001 by the French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (ADEME).

It was developed using the literature of various international and government agencies and organizations. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports and methodological documents for assessing GHG emissions were some of the main references, among other documents published by various French organizations conducting GHG emission inventories, along with reports issued through the United Nations Environment Programme, the GHG Protocol, and the Global Emission Model for Integrated Systems (GEMIS).

The instrument has the two major functions of:

Evaluating the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted by a structure (company, local government, territory...)
Evaluating this structure's dependence on fossil energies – in order to anticipate the economic and social impacts of increasing scarcity of such fuels.

Therefore, the aim of the Bilan Carbone^® is not to decide who is responsible for GHG emissions, but who can act to reduce them.

Besides, Bilan Carbone^® focuses exclusively on GHG emissions and their relationship to climate change. No other environmental externality is taken into account.

2. CHARACTERISTICS

Bilan Carbone^® is a method for estimating GHG emissions originating from all kinds of business entities (services, industries, etc.) as well as government offices; after its latest update (v.6 – May 2009) it can now also assess the emissions of whole territories and local administrations.

Put simply, Bilan Carbone^® now exists in two broad versions:

“Company – Administration – Organizations”
“Local authorities”, split into two different modules:

“Assets and Services”: to assess the structures under the local authority’s direct control, and thus allow it to assume an exemplary ‘eco-responsibility’;
“Territory”: to assess the territory under the local authority’s influence field. This module is more specifically oriented towards general decision-making to fight climate change.

Since 2006, other tools linked to Bilan Carbone^® have also been developed by the ADEME:

Bilan Produit^® (assessment of the environmental impact of the products generated by a company, in order to launch an eco-design approach)
Bilan Carbone Events^® (GHG assessment for events organization)
Bilan Carbone Campus^® (GHG assessment for educational facilities)
Dia’Terre^® (energy and GHG emissions diagnosis for farms)
ClimaTerre^® (assessment of agricultural practices and agricultural production)

From 2004 to 2009 included, Bilan Carbone^® has been used on more than 4,000 different projects (see graph).

3. SCOPE

Bilan Carbone^® is compatible with the GHG Protocol and the ISO 14064 norm. It takes into account the six GHG considered in the Kyoto Protocol (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, HFC, PFC, SF₆), but also notably includes CFC gases and stratospheric H₂0.

"Direct" and "Indirect" Emissions

Bilan Carbone^® advocates a global approach, taking into account both the direct, 'on-site' emissions of the structure considered (scope 1 & 2)– and the indirect (scope 3), 'off-site' emissions generated by its activities: i.e. those of other actors and structures necessary to its existence. The decision to take the latter into account, and to which extent, is a particularly crucial stage of a Bilan Carbone^® project.

For instance, in the case of a regional administration (in charge of education facilities, etc.), GHG emissions generated by the heating systems of the administrative buildings and establishments managed by this administration can all be considered direct emissions. However, emissions stemming from the production of school equipments, stationery etc. used by those establishments will be considered indirect emissions – which can nonetheless be influenced by the administration's procurement policies, if the latter is aiming for a smaller amount of emissions.

The Bilan Carbone Scopes.

Emission Areas

Bilan Carbone^® determines which processes are candidates for revision within the operational stream by assessing emissions and revealing the areas on which the reductions effort have to concentrate. As assessments, the results provide an estimate of what the emissions really might be. Nonetheless, these estimates cover a very comprehensive field of view. The source data needed for analysis includes:

Fossil fuel consumption: amounts purchased (tons, litres, kWh…)
Electricity or steam: amounts purchased (kWh)
Other direct emissions: amounts of nitrogen fertilizer used, number of cows, refills purchased (for HFC leaks)…
Freight transport: length of travel, means of transportation, and weight carried…
Transport of persons: length of travel, means of transportation, number of cars used for daily commuting…
Material and immaterial inputs: weight used, by nature of material (steel, plastics, glass, paper, etc.).
Waste treatment: weights disposed off, by nature of material and kind of treatment…
Amortization of capital assets: area of offices or plants, number of computers…

4. METHODOLOGY

For each of the emission areas, activity data must be collected and multiplied by the emission factors particular to the area in which the Bilan Carbone^® is carried out (which are defined in the Bilan Carbone^® methodology). For instance, consuming a certain amount of electricity generated through renewable energies would have a much lower GHG emission factor than consuming the same amount as generated by a coal power plant.

Internat Energy Solutions is experienced in the process of adapting the emission factors of Bilan Carbone^® from one country to another. We have already researched and compiled such data in the case of Canada, and we intend to do so in China.

Example: Emissions due to fossil fuel use.

Every Bilan Carbone^® project follows a 6-steps process, which can be summed up according to the following stages:

Greenhouse Gases Approach (ongoing): The Bilan Carbone^® approach focuses on the close relationship between GHG emissions and climate change. Throughout the process, education and sensitization seminars will be organized to involve all employees of the considered structure. Cooperation on behalf of everyone, throughout the data collection and analysis stage, will be essential; it is therefore equally important that everyone knows the purpose of the Bilan Carbone^® process.
Definition of the scope of the study: Decision-makers within the project structure have to decide, in this phase, which emissions they wish to assess: emissions their structure is directly or indirectly accountable for, and to what extent.
Data collection: audit and analysis of the existing facilities and operations of the project structure.
Result exploitation: Case models building, and assessment and prioritization of the systems and operations in order to identify areas for improvement.
Reduction actions for implementation: in this phase, IES presents its recommendations and roadmap for implementation in a final report and presentation.
Launching reduction actions: after discussing the previous recommendations, the project structure decides on the actions it will undertake.

It must be understood that no solution nor course of action is directly issued by the Bilan Carbone^® instrument itself: the figures produced must be interpreted by a professional consultant, with the experience and knowledge necessary to provide advice, and help establish a GHG emissions reduction strategy.

5. SOME OF OUR PROJECTS IN THIS FIELD

Embassy of France - Washington DC, United States
(32,000 m² building surface) Adaptation of the Bilan Carbone^® instrument to Washington DC. CO₂ emissions inventory; on-site training and communication seminars; greenhouse gas emissions reduction action plan.

Harbourfront Centre - Toronto, Canada
(Art studios, live performing theatres, entertainment complexes). Adaptation of the Bilan Carbone^® instrument to Toronto. Greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategy; energy audit and renewable energy potential on site; full project management.

Ministry of Education, Universities and Research - Paris, France
(17,000 m² building surface, including the Minister’s office) CO₂ emissions inventory; on-site training and communication seminars; greenhouse gas emissions reduction action plan.