The Balearic Government has published Decree 48/2021, which approves the creation of the Balearic Carbon Footprint Register, a tool aimed mainly at ensuring compliance with its political objectives in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Specifically, the decree establishes the rules for the compulsory registration of large and medium-sized companies set up in the Balearic Islands as well as autonomous public administration bodies, along with the instrumental public sector. In addition, it regulates how the reduction plans and the absorption or compensation projects must be presented to and admitted on this registry.

For maximum guarantees to achieve these objectives, the need has been established for the carbon footprint calculation verification to be carried out by a verification body accredited by ENAC or by another EU Member State national accreditation body according to international standards.

The approval of this decree is part of the new sustainable and low-carbon regional model and its Law on Climate Change and Energy Transition aimed at easing compliance with international objectives to combat climate change after adhering to the United Nations Convention’s objectives and action lines of the Paris Agreement.

 

Accredited inspection: a tool at the service of climate change mitigation

The accredited carbon footprint verification offers the public administration, companies, and the general public the necessary information on the activity, product, or service’s environmental impact in GHG emission units. This information is used by these agents when making decisions about purchasing, subcontracting, authorizing, or granting public funds, registering an emissions figure or a project in a public registry. Hence the importance of these figures being accurate, reliable, and reproducible, characteristics that only the support of an accredited inspection can offer.

With this recognition, the Balearic Government makes a firm commitment to ensuring that greenhouse gas verification emissions reports or the validation of absorption projects are carried out only by bodies having demonstrated the necessary knowledge and techniques to operate at the levels of requirement demanded by international standards and under ENAC's supervision.