Category: National governments, Emission inventories

United Arab Emirates Air Quality Inventory

Aether, in partnership with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), supported the Ministry of Climate Change and the Environment (MOCCAE) to compile the first UAE air pollutant emission inventory.

The challenge

Improving air quality is a priority for the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is part of the Country’s Green Agenda, one of the Key Performance Indicators in the national agenda and is also mentioned in the Vision 2021 plan. In response, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) launched the Air Emissions Monitoring Project to develop the first national level inventory for air pollutant emissions in the UAE. This project identified the key sources of air pollutants in the country so that appropriate strategies can be put in place to improve air quality.

The solution

Aether compiled air pollutant inventories for 2015 for each individual Emirate. These inventories were added together to provide data at the national level. The inventories were compiled according to the methodologies provided in the 2016 EMEP/EEA Guidebook and covered the following sectors: stationary energy combustion, transport, industrial processes and product use, agriculture and waste. Priority was given to the collection of local and national data sources, which has allowed for Emirate-specific emission calculations.

The inventory was compiled using Aether’s inventory templates. These include tailored data summaries and have been adapted for country-specific reporting needs. They also include in-built QA/QC checks which ensure time-series consistency and help to prevent errors. In addition, the customised inventory calculations were delivered to MOCCAE at the end of the project. The inventory can be improved overtime by national experts without any additional input from external experts.

Producing the AQ inventory estimates was a useful step in understanding air quality issues in the UAE. However, the most important aspect of this project was the training and engagement of national experts and stakeholders. During this project, two training workshops were provided to support the development of national expertise and to communicate the key messages surrounding air quality to stakeholders from all Emirates.

The result

This project has produced the first ever air pollutant inventory developed for all seven Emirates. Emission estimates have been compiled for the year 2015, for six pollutants. The results of the inventory have allowed the main pollution sources to be identified, so that appropriate action can be taken to improve air quality across the UAE.

The development of national expertise and the final recommendations for inventory improvement provide the basis for the UAE to improve the completeness and accuracy of the emission estimates for the next inventory cycle.

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Melanie Hobson

Director

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Testimonial

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“Engaging Aether to support us to develop the first GHG Inventory System and first Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the United Republic of Tanzania has been a rewarding experience due to their high level of professionalism, creativity, timeliness and value for money. We will definitely consider Aether in our future initiatives.”

Abbas Kitogo, Programme Specialist Energy and Climate Change, UNDP Tanzania

“Professional team and very collaborative communication. Effective result in terms of suggestions for improvement in the quality of the inventory and proposals on how to streamline specific topics.”

Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research

“Both the face-to-face training and the online version have been of high quality, with dynamic methods and a practical orientation that have allowed students to reach a solid knowledge base. The products have been delivered within the stipulated deadlines with an excellent quality and the team has always shown willingness to make adjustments according to the requirements of CONAF. We are very satisfied with the work. ”

Javier Cano Martín, Professional Unit for Climate Change and Environmental Services, CONAF (National Forestry Corporation), Chile

“It is always an absolute pleasure working with Aether. I always know what is expected of me. Their work ethic is of a very high standard and projects are always handled in a very professional manner. I have learnt many skills in terms of project management, quality control and workshop training styles from Aether and I hope to carry these principles forward in my own work. I look forward to collaborating with Aether more in the future.”

Luanne Stevens, Gondwana

“Aether was a great asset in involving/engaging with Member States experts on highly technical subjects regarding GHG reporting. Very clear communication of issues and results.”

Andreas Pilzecker, DG CLIMA

“A heartfelt thank you to all the Aether team for this very comprehensive review – this is certainly turning out to be one of the most beneficial capacity building projects I have ever been involved in.”

Saviour Vassallo, Senior Environment Protection Officer, Malta Resources Authority

“Aether delivered training workshops and generated learning materials for our SSN members, providing technical content in a manageable and comprehendible format. We particularly benefitted from their extensive knowledge and ability to interpret the needs of our members into the training materials.”

Jennifer Anderson, Sustainable Scotland Network

“The team at Aether works very professionally and communicates very well which makes working with them a pleasure. Outputs are delivered on time to high quality. The team brings the rigour of technical knowledge and expertise and finds innovative ways of communicating complex messages. I would be happy to recommend the Aether team to organisations working on analysing and presenting emissions information in the public domain.”

Fiona Glover, States of Jersey

“If we have a need for any more reports in the future Aether will be first on my list.”

Alan Hardy, Kyson Design

“The support provided by Aether for this project was especially remarkable considering the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tools and methods used in order to engage local stakeholders really added value to the capacity building of the national team.”

Shanna Emmanuel, Saint Lucia BUR Project Coordinator

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