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Joint Implementation

Cooperative efforts between countries or entities within them to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions offer significant potential to combat the threat of climate change and to promote sustainable development. Such "joint implementation" can achieve greater emission reductions than may otherwise be likely if each country pursued only domestic actions. It may also achieve these reductions more cost-effectively on a global basis. Joint implementation offers additional benefits, including:

The concept of joint implementation was formally adopted in Article 4(2)(a) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which provides for Parties to the Convention to meet their obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions "jointly with other parties." In 1993, the United States announced a pilot joint implementation program, the U.S. Initiative on Joint Implementation (USIJI), as part of the U.S. Climate Change Action Plan. The USIJI program supports the development and implementation of voluntary projects, between U.S. and non-U.S. partners, that reduce, avoid, or sequester greenhouse gas emissions. Final ground rules for the USIJI program, published in the Federal Register in June 1994, describe the purpose of the pilot program, outline the time line for evaluation and reassessment of the program, define eligibility criteria for domestic and non-U.S. participants, establish an Evaluation Panel to review potential USIJI projects, and define criteria for acceptance of projects into the USIJI portfolio.

USIJI is the first and currently most developed joint implementation pilot program worldwide. To date, the program has received over sixty project proposals, resulting in twenty-five accepted projects in eleven countries. These projects apply a variety of technologies and practices, including wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, and solar energy; coal to natural gas fuel switching, methane gas capture; and sustainable forest management and preservation.

Projects accepted into the USIJI program are evaluated against the nine criteria, and the four other areas of consideration, included in the USIJI Groundrules. These criteria are intended to identify projects that support the development goals of the host country while providing greenhouse gas benefits beyond those that would occur in the absence of the joint implementation activity. The criteria have been formulated to ensure that projects accepted into the program will produce real, measurable net emission reductions, which will be measured, monitored, verified, and reported.

The USIJI program is directed by an Interagency Working Group, chaired by the Department of State, which has the primary responsibility for policy development. The USIJI Evaluation Panel is co-chaired by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy, and includes representatives from the Agency for International Development and the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Interior, State, and Treasury. The USIJI Secretariat, an interagency staff, supports the day-to-day operation of the USIJI program. Technical experts are drawn from a wide variety of organizations to assist the Secretariat in the proposal review process and to provide technical assistance to project developers.

Sample Joint Implementation Projects

Czech Republic--Decin Fuel Switching, Cogeneration, and Efficiency Improvements Project
The City of Decin in the Czech Republic is supplying both heat and potable hot water to local apartment blocks. This project has converted Decin's Bynov district heating plant from coal to natural gas. A cogeneration facility also has been built to provide steam and electricity. USIJI partners include the City of Decin, Center for Clean Air Policy, Wisconsin Electric Power Company, Commonwealth Edition Company, and NIPSCO Development Company.

Russian Federation--RUSAFOR Afforestation Project
This project has planted seedlings on 506 hectares (1,250 acres) of marginal agricultural and burned forest land, will sequester greenhouse gas emissions, prevent soil erosion, and foster public participation in joint implementation activities. USIJI partners include the International Forestry Institute, Oregon State University, Russian Federal Forest Service, Sustainable Development Technology Corp., and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Costa Rica--Rio Bravo Project
This project has two components: the purchase of land to add to existing protected areas and the implementation of sustainable forest management practices on the larger conservation area to produce economic benefits to the neighboring population. USIJI partners include CINergy, Detroit Edition Company, PacifiCorp, Programme for Belize, The Nature Conservancy, Utilitree, and Wisconsin Electric Power Company.

Costa Rica--Plantas Eolicas S.A. Wind Facility
This 20­megawatt wind electric plant will displace electricity currently generated by the burning of fossil fuels. USIJI partners include Charter Oak Energy, Inc., Merrill International, Ltd., and Plantas Eolicas, S.A.

The USIJI Secretariat offers a variety of technical services to support both the development and the implementation of USIJI projects:

The USIJI Secretariat will accept project proposals at any time and will provide limited technical assistance to project developers to help address USIJI project evaluation criteria and other considerations as specified in the USIJI Groundrules. A formal proposal evaluation and acceptance process is conducted three times a year. ~~

Table 4-12

Summary of AIJ Projects Reported Under Annex I
Place and Title of Activity Type of Project Stage of Activity1 Project Life2 Greenhouse Gases3
CO2 (MTs) Other (MTs)
Belize
Rio Bravo Carbon Sequestration Pilot Project Forestry/Land Use--Forest management and conservation In progress 40 yrs. 4,770,000
BEL/MAYA Biomass Power Generation Project Renewable Energy--Biomass Mutually agreed 30 yrs. 3,500,000 4,800 NOX
Bolivia
Noel Kempff M. Climate Action Project Forestry/Land Use--Forest management In progress 30 yrs. 53,170,000
Costa Rica
Plantas Eolicas, S.A., Wind Facility Renewable Energy--Wind; fuel switching In progress 15 yrs. 263,000
ECOLAND: Esquinas National Park Forestry/Land Use--Forest management and conservation In progress 15 yrs. 1,267,000
KLINKIFIX: Klinki Forestry Project Forestry/Land Use--Forest management Mutually agreed 40 yrs. 6,970,000
Project CARFIX: Sustainable Forest Management Land Use In progress 25 yrs. 21,780,000
Tierras Morenas Windfarm Project Renewable Energy--Wind In progress 15 yrs. 187,000
Aeroenergia Wind Facility Project Renewable Energy--Wind In progress 20 yrs. 36,000
BIODIVERSIFIX: Forest Restoration Forestry/Land Use--Tropical forest management and reforestation; wood In progress 50 yrs. 18,500,000
Dona Julia Hydroelectric Project Renewable Energy--Hydropower In progress 15 yrs. 210,000
Czech Republic
Fuel Switching and Cogeneration for Decin District Heating System Energy Use In progress 25 yrs. 605,000
Equador
Forest Conservation Bilsa Reserve Forestry/Land Use--Forest management and conservation In progress 25 yrs. 1,600,000
Honduras
Bio-Gen Biomass Power-Generating Project Renewable Energy--Biomass Mutually agreed Over 20 yrs. 2,300,000
Phase 1, Guaimaca Site
Phase 2, Sava Site
Solar-Based Rural Electrification in Honduras Energy Use Mutually agreed 20 yrs. 17,000
Indonesia
Reduced-Impact Logging in Kalimantan Forestry/Land Use--Forest management; wood Mutually agreed 40 yrs. 207,000
Mexico
Scolel Te--Sustainable Land Management and Carbon Sequestration Multicomponent Forestry In progress 30 yrs. 843,000
Halophyte Cultivation in Sonora Renewable Energy--Biomass In progress Soil carbon storage, over 10 yrs. 2,400
Nicaragua
El Hoyo Monte Galan Geothermal Project Renewable Energy--Geothermal Mutually agreed 35 yrs. 19,770,000
Panama
Commercial Reforestation of Chiriqui Province Forestry/Land Use--Reforestation Mutually agreed 25 yrs. 213,000
Russian Federation
District Heating Improvements in Zelenograd Energy Efficiency--Industrial/HVAC Mutually agreed 30 yrs. 1,613,000
RUSAFOR: Saratov Afforestation Project Forestry/Land Use--Afforestation In progress 60 yrs. 128,000
RUSAGAS: Fugitive Gas Capture Project Energy Efficiency--Fossil fuels; natural gas; energy intensity Mutually agreed 25 yrs. 1,220,000 tons CH4
Reforestation in Vologda Forestry/Land Use--Reforestation Mutually agreed 60 yrs. 880,000

Uniform Reporting Format: National Program on Activities Implemented Jointly Under the Pilot Phase

I. Designated national authority for activities implemented jointly
Name (English): U.S. Initiative on Joint Implementation
Acronym: USIJI
Street: 1000 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Code: PO­6
City: Washington, D.C. 20585
Country: U.S.A.
Telephone: (202) 586­3288
Fax: (202) 586­3485, ­3486
E­mail: csmt@igc.apc.org
Contact Person: Dr. Robert K. Dixon, Director
Direct Telephone: (202) 586­3003
Direct Fax: (202) 586­3485, ­3486
Direct e­mail: rdixon@igc.apc.org

II. Description of program structure and features
The USIJI program is directed by an Interagency Working Group, chaired by the Department of State, which has the primary responsibility for policy development. The USIJI Evaluation Panel is co­chaired by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy, and includes representatives from the Agency for International Development and the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Interior, State, and Treasury. The USIJI Secretariat, an interagency staff, supports the day­to­day operation of the USIJI program. Technical experts are drawn from a wide variety of organizations to assist the Secretariat in the proposal review process and to provide technical assistance to project developers. The USIJI Secretariat offers a variety of technical services to support both the development and the implementation of USIJI projects.

III. Process for obtaining approval
A. Briefly describe the procedure:

The USIJI Secretariat manages the proposal evaluation process. The evaluation schedule includes announcements of newly accepted USIJI projects in June 1997, October 1997, and February 1998. After project developers submit project proposals to the USIJI Secretariat, they are assigned to Proposal Managers on the USIJI Secretariat staff, who screen them for completeness. Project developers are contacted for additional information, clarification, and/or consultation, as necessary. Proposals are then distributed to technical reviewers for a thorough evaluation. Each proposal is reviewed by a team of experts familiar with the technology, country­specific issues, and environmental effects specific to that proposal.

Following technical review, Proposal Managers draft a Decision Memorandum for each proposal. Each Decision Memorandum includes discussion of how well each USIJI criterion is addressed by the proposal and a recommendation for acceptance or rejection by the Evaluation Panel. The Panel meets to review the recommendations present in the Decision Memoranda. Project developers are then notified in writing whether their project has been accepted by the USIJI Evaluation Panel. Project proposals that meet most, but not all, of the USIJI criteria are placed in an "in­development" category. In­development proposals are eligible to receive technical assistance and, once all USIJI criteria are met, may be reevaluated at a subsequent USIJI Evaluation Panel meeting.

Project proposals may be informally submitted to the USIJI Secretariat at any time for feedback from Secretariat staff. Once a proposal has been formally submitted to the USIJI Secretariat within proposal submission deadlines, the Secretariat will make every effort to complete the evaluation process within 90 days.

B. List all criteria for national acceptance of an activity implemented jointly:

a. Criteria that support decision 5/CP.1:

  1. Is acceptable to the government of the host country.
  2. Involves specific measures to reduce or sequester greenhouse gas emissions initiated as a result of the USIJI program, or in reasonable anticipation thereof.
  3. Will reduce or sequester greenhouse gas emissions beyond those referred to in 3. a. above and, if federally funded, is or will be undertaken with funds in excess of those available for such activities in fiscal year 1993.
  4. Identifies associated environmental and developmental benefits and impacts.
b. Other criteria for national acceptance of AIJ:
  1. Provides data and methodological information sufficient to establish a baseline of current and future greenhouse gas emissions:
    • in the absence of the specific measures of the project or
    • as a result of the specific measures of the project.
  2. Contains adequate provisions for tracking the greenhouse gas emissions reduced or sequestered as a result of the project and, on a periodic basis, for modifying such estimates and for comparing actual results with those originally projected.
  3. Contains adequate provisions for external verification of the greenhouse gas emissions reduced or sequestered by the project.
  4. Provides adequate assurance that greenhouse gas emissions reduced or sequestered over time will not be lost or reversed.
  5. Provides for annual reports to the Evaluation Panel on the emissions reduced or sequestered, and on the share of such emissions attributed to each of the participants-domestic and foreign-pursuant to the terms of voluntary agreements among participants.

IV. Summary of activities

A. Summarize AIJ projects reported under Annex 1 (see Table 4-12) .

B. Summarize non-AIJ activities .

Conferences/Workshops
  • January 1995: JI Southeast Asia Regional Workshop, Bangkok, Thailand.
  • March 1995: JI Central and Eastern Europe Workshop, Prague, Czech Republic.
  • March 1995: JI South American Regional Workshop, Santiago, Chile.
  • May 1995: Middle East Regional Workshop, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
  • May 1995: USIJI Program Conference, Arlington, Virginia, USA.
  • June 1995: JI Workshop for the Americas, San Jose, Costa Rica.
  • June 1996: Sponsored the regional Southeast Asia Workshop on AIJ in Jakarta, Indonesia.
  • November 1996: Co­sponsored the JI Capacity Building Workshop in La Paz, Bolivia.
  • January 1997: Co­sponsored the conference on AIJ: Developing Country Perspectives in New Delhi, India.
  • April 1997: Co­sponsored the JI Capacity Building Workshop in Santiago, Chile.

Guidance Documents and Other Materials

  • April 1996: U.S. submitted Report on AIJ to the UN FCCC Secretariat.
  • March 1997: In conjunction with the IIEC, published and distributed a brochure and report: Opportunity Knocks: The Export Market for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Products and Services.
  • Published and distributed a USIJI Program Brochure, 6 editions of International Partnerships Reports, 2 USIJI Fact Sheets, a USIJI poster, and 4 sample USIJI proposals.
  • Established a USIJI page on the Internet, JI Online, which can be accessed at http://www.ji.org
  • Published a draft resource document: USIJI Project and Proposal Development.

Next: Chapter 5. Vulnerability and Adaptation