Climate Change Act 2008 Explanatory Notes

Climate Change Act 2008

2008 CHAPTER 27

Commentary on Sections

Part 1: Carbon Target and Budgeting

Other supplementary provisions

Section 29: UK emissions and removals of greenhouse gases

149. This section defines the terms “UK emissions”, “UK removals” and “net UK emissions” used in Part 1 of the Act. “UK emissions” are emissions of gases from sources in the United Kingdom; “UK removals” are removals of gases from the atmosphere as a result of land use, land-use change or forestry; “net UK emissions” of a gas are calculated by subtracting the amount of UK removals of the gas from the amount of UK emissions of the gas.

150. Subsection (2) provides that UK emissions and UK removals are to be determined by following international protocols, such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Reporting Guidelines on Annual Inventories. Emissions only count for the purposes of this Act if they are emissions of greenhouse gases from anthropogenic sources; non-anthropogenic sources of greenhouse gases (for example, emissions from volcanic activity) are not included in the figures (see the definition of “emissions” in section 97).