BUSINESS STANDARDS
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BSI: world leader in greenhouse gas emissions verification
27 Apr 2009
Topics: GHG, Environment, ISO 14065
BSI has received accreditation to ISO 14065 for Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission verification services from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
BSI has already established itself as a leader in GHG emissions verification. For example, BSI developed PAS 2050 Specification for the assessment of the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of goods and services, showing clear commitment to the subject. The publicly available specification was designed to ensure a consistent and comparable approach to supply chain measurement of embodied GHGs across markets.
BSI also launched its Carbon Footprint Verification (CFV) scheme in the UK in 2008. It was created for businesses seeking to declare their corporate carbon footprint, and reassure customers, employees, shareholders, potential investors, environmental groups, and the media of the integrity and completeness of their calculations. The service is delivered in accordance with the principles laid out for GHG verifiers in ISO 14065 and can be verified against ISO 14064-1 and the WBCSD/WRI GHG Protocol for Corporate Accounting and Reporting.
Independent verification of GHG assertions provides assurance that GHG emissions monitoring, measuring and inventory are properly managed and accounted at organizational or facility level against governing regional or international standards. In addition to assured reliability in emission reporting, a verified GHG emission inventory demonstrates that an organization is effectively and diligently managing and monitoring their energy consumption and associated GHG emissions.
These efforts, followed by its accreditation, confirms BSI's global expertise in verifying GHG emission and reduction assertions, placing the world's most prominent independent management assurance service provider among the few recognized GHG emission verification bodies in the Americas.
BSI recently put this expertise into practice through its audit of the Joffre LAO plant of INEOS, based in Canada. According to Charles Obst, environmental specialist with INEOS: ?BSI conducted a very thorough audit. We have used them since our initial registration for environmental management systems in 2002.?
?As the third largest petro-chemical producer in the world, INEOS? commitment to manage their greenhouse gas emissions moves the needle forward for climate change,? says Todd VanderVen, president of BSI Americas. ?BSI?s global presence, extensive experience and technical expertise in GHG emission verification make us the natural choice for any industry and company size."
In recent years, a myriad of voluntary GHG emission disclosure initiatives and mandatory regulatory reporting frameworks have emerged. President Obama has made clear in his budget for Fiscal Year 2010 the intention to establish a cap on GHG emissions, requiring organizations to inventory and report emissions, and to acquire and trade the necessary emissions allowances.
Under this future cap-and-trade system, organizations that have preemptively inventoried, reported and verified their GHG emissions stand to be rewarded not only with regulatory advantages, but also tangible early action credit.
"Most, if not all, of the existing voluntary GHG disclosure initiatives and mandatory reporting regulations in North America require independent verifications of emission reporting or reduction assertions," points out Wilhelm Wang, product manager responsible for business sustainability at BSI in the US. "Independent third-party verification lends necessary creditability to the assertion and forms the foundation of reporting transparency.
"Furthermore, as considerable volumes of emissions result directly or indirectly from energy use, a comprehensive GHG emission inventory often enables organizations to identify opportunities to increase the efficiency of their operations, reduce energy consumption and realize measurable cost savings," he adds.
"A well-designed and executed GHG emission management programme and verification by an accredited verifier, such as BSI, affords management with an assured assertion. Most importantly, it brings rigour and institutes discipline to an organization's energy management programme."
For more information, visit: http://www.bsiamerica.com/en-us/Assessment-and-Certification-services/Management-systems/Standards-and-schemes/GHGEV/
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons, released under the terms of the CC-BY-SA 2.5 license by Uwe Hermann.
Business Standards © 2009. Editorial produced by Caspian Publishing in association with the British Standards Institution. Editorial opinions expressed on are not necessarily those of BSI Group or Caspian Publishing. Neither Caspian Publishing nor BSI Group accept responsibility for advertising or editorial content, nor for that appearing on linked third-party websites. Reproduction in whole or in part is forbidden without written permission from BSI Group or Caspian Publishing.
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