1. 03 Air Emissions Accounts (AEA)
Working Group Environmental Accounts Meeting of 19 and 20 February 2014

2. Overview – 2 work areas AEA production cycle (highlights & challenges)
- discussion
Environmentally extended Input-Output modelling

3. 1 Highlights and challenges related to the production cycle for air emissions accounts (AEA)

4. AEA production cycle

5. 1.1 Data collection 2013 (1)
28 questionnaires received (of which 25 EU)
3 countries estimated
27 validated and 26 up-loaded to Eurobase (by 10 February)

6. 1.1 Data collection 2013 (2)
Responses and checks (7/2/2014)

7. 1.2 Data quality issues (1)
Quality seems best for those 8 pollutants for which Eurostat makes gap-filling (3 greenhouse gases: CO2, N2O, CH4; and five air pollutants: SOx, NOx, NH3, CO, NMVOC).
Many countries are not able to fill out the tables for F-gases – HFC, PFC, and SF6. It seems difficult to assign to NACE industries due to the nature of these emissions (e.g. leakages from equipment and appliances after many years).

8. 1.2 Data quality issues (2)
CO2-emissions from biomass are missing for some countries indicating some difficulties.
For some countries and across all substances the bridging items seem incomplete; Residence adjustments related to international air and water transport constitute a particular compilation challenge (see also agenda point 6); Eurostat assumes there is potential for improved data quality in this area.

9. 1.2 Data quality issues (3)
It seems that the bridging item 'other adjustments and statistical discrepancy' is often used to host 'not allocated' items or 'unassignable' discrepancies between the AEA-totals and the inventory totals. This should be investigated with a view to minimising such items.

10. 1.2 Quality reports (1)
Producing quality reports is required by the Regulation
29 countries provided QR
In general the quality of the reports is good
Countries well describe the methods used and openly name deficiencies and problems
Eurostat is making a detailed analysis of the QR

11. 1.2 Quality reports (2) 11

12. 1.2 Quality reports (3) 12

13. 1.2 Quality reports-questions
Shall Eurostat make quality reports available to NSIs (e.g. via CIRCABC)?

14. 1.2 Data quality issues - conclusion
Consolidating AEA and in particular improving the data quality of AEA is one of the main objectives for the coming years.
Eurostat assumes that data quality will improve gradually over the years due to refined methodologies in NSIs.
Physical energy flow accounts (PEFA) will help to improve AEA data quality.

15. 1.2 Data quality issues - questions
Delegates are asked to express further ideas on the consolidation and improvement of data quality of AEA.
What could be done by Eurostat?
What could be done on country level?

16. 1.3 Gap-filling by Eurostat 1
So far, Eurostat gap-fills 8 pollutants (CO2, N2O, CH4, SOx, NOx, NH3, CO, NMVOC)
Bottom-up approach: all EU Member States data is gap-filled
Fully fledged national datasets required to publish data on country level and EU aggregates
Objective: EU-28 complete time series; A*64
Method: correspondence matrix CRF/NFR => NACE Rev.2

17. 1.3 Gap-filling by Eurostat 2
Eurostat would like to extend gap-filling and EU-estimating for the remaining 6 pollutants (CO2_bio, HFC, PFC, SF6, PM10, PM2.5).
For PM10 and PM2.5 the same method could work.
CO2_bio ?
F-gases ?

18. 1.3 Gap-filling by Eurostat 3
In future: estimating EU-aggregates for the bridging items
However, the reported bridging items seem incomplete for some countries, pollutants, years.

19. 1.3 Gap-filling by Eurostat 4
Two options for generating EU-aggregates of the bridging items:
Adding up the reported bridging items – although incomplete – leading to 'biased' estimates for EU.
Gap-filling bridging item data before summing up – however, so far no methodology is known to Eurostat.

20. 1.3 Gap-filling – questions 1
Delegates are asked to express their view on Eurostat's intention to gap-fill and estimate missing data for the six pollutants CO2_bio, HFC, PFC, SF6, PM10, PM2.5.
In particular, delegates are invited to share experiences and propose methods for gap-filling/estimations of these six pollutants.

21. 1.3 Gap-filling – questions 2
Delegates are asked to express their view on Eurostat's intention to estimate EU aggregates for the bridging items.
Delegates are asked to express their ideas with regards to the methodology for generating EU-aggregates of bridging items.

22. Summary of questions related to AEA data production/quality
Quality reports – make available?
Ideas for improving AEA data quality?
Gap-filling of CO2_bio, F-gases, PM – which methodology?
Gap-filling/estimating bridging items – which methodology?

23. 1.4 Data collection 2014 (1) New symbols:
The symbol '-' (not applicable) will not be used any more in questionnaires
Description
Symbol
Zero
Not available :

24. 1.4 Data collection 2014 (2) Important dates:
Manual for Air Emissions Accounts (2009 edition) and the compilation guide (Part B of the Manual; 2013 edition) updated (before Apr 2014)
Launch of questionnaire (Apr 2014) – no major changes foreseen
Reporting for years from 2008 to 2012 obligatory
Deadline (30 Sep 2014)
First publications (Nov 2014)
Complete and gap-filled data set (Jan 2015)

25. 2 Environmentally extended Input-Output modelling based on air emissions accounts (AEA)

26. 2 eeIO modelling Since 2010 Eurostat undertakes IO modelling
with 8 pollutants from AEA
for aggregated EU economy
Estimate: How many emissions are 'embodied' in imports into and exports from EU?
(results are presented tomorrow)

27. 2 eeIO modelling Simple Leontief model
=> Domestic technology assumption
'avoided' vs. 'caused'
Problematic (for imports) in the case of most air pollutants…
…because the application of abatement technologies can be very different in exporting countries compared to EU.
CO2: no abatement technology!

28. 2 eeIO modelling Two data sets available on Eurobase:
NACE Rev.1.1: Emissions of 8 greenhouse gases and air pollutants induced by final use of CPA02 products [env_ac_io]
from 2008 onwards NACE Rev. 2: Emissions of CO2 by final use of CPA08 products [env_ac_io2]

29. 2 eeIO modelling - questions
Delegates are asked to comment on Eurostat's policy to publish IO modelling results only for CO2 (estimates of 'carbon footprints')