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Method development

To meet international reporting requirements, New Zealand reporting must be consistent with the Good Practice Guidance (GPG) for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

For the New Zealand Government to be able to claim, trade, or offset its emissions on the global market using forestry sink credits, the LUCAS measurements and their analyses are subject to international expert review.
Carbon accounting and reporting must be:

  • Comparable: estimates of our emissions and removals should be comparable with those of other countries
  • Complete: include all above- and below-ground carbon stocks and changes for land use, land-use change and forestry, as well as full geographic coverage of sources and sinks
  • Accurate: no bias in the methodology used; neither under- nor over-estimates; and uncertainties need to be quantified and reduced over time
  • Transparent: assumptions and methodologies (equations, models) must be clear and available for replication, with methods based on peer-reviewed science
  • Consistent: use the same methodology over time.

LUCAS runs a long term research programme in collaboration with the New Zealand Forest Institute (SCION) to ensure the methodology utilised for reporting meets these requirements. 
The method development for the carbon reporting system within LUCAS focuses principally on:

A first priority was to develop sound techniques for collecting land use data, and then to work out how to calculate the carbon values for each of the five carbon pools. The methodology needs to be robust, scientifically sound, fit for purpose and ultimately pass peer review in order to meet GPG requirements.

The results of investigations and method development for each component will be published in independent peer-reviewed journals: this provides transparency and ensures that New Zealand approaches are widely understood.

Last updated: 6 April 2011