ccc & msc-w - EMEP

2. Overview of EMEP reported emission data
Since the start of the LRTAP Convention, the improvement in emission reporting to EMEP has
been massive, aided greatly by the establishment of the relevant guidelines. Emission reporting
has improved markedly since last year, specially concerning national and sectoral totals.
However, Parties show still difficulties on reporting reporting gridded data and projections
within the established deadlines.
Following the recommendations from the last meeting of the Task Force on Emissions
Inventories in June 1999, this chapter reviews the EMEP emission reporting requirements and
evaluates them in relation to the main objectives of the acidification programme for its seventh
phase. A complete report on the present status of the UN/ECE-EMEP emission data and the
emission data used for modilling purposes at MSC-W is given in Mylona (1999). Updated
emission values up to 1997 will be available on the Internet at http://www.emep.int from mid-
September 1999.
2.1 Main objectives for the EMEP emission data
Under the Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP) the supply of
good quality emission data is essential in:
a) assessing the state and trends of air pollution in Europe,
b) establishing the compliance of the Parties with protocol commitments, and
c) providing a basis for development of cost-effective abatement strategies,
These are the main objectives for the work of EMEP during its seventh phase. The quality of
the emission data is measured in terms of its:
• completeness,
• transparency
• consistency
• comparability
• accuracy
The assessment of trends in emissions and depositions to survey the progress towards
environmental goals imposes an increased demand for completenes, consistency and
transparency in the emission data. The completeness of the data concerns both the temporal
evolution and the geographical distribution.
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