Introduction

Regular reporting by Parties according to common guidelines, and the systematic review of those reports, makes up the backbone of the climate change regime. This reporting and review process supplies valuable information on, among other things, the GHG emissions of Parties and their sources, the actions being taken to combat climate change and their effectiveness, and the local impacts of climate change. Reporting and review has taken on added importance under the Kyoto Protocol, providing the basis for assessing compliance with legally binding targets and for ensuring the validity of transactions under the Kyoto mechanisms. Rigorous reporting and review is thus critical to ensuring the environmental integrity of the climate change regime and, linked to this, to securing the transparency needed to reassure Parties that the burden of implementation is being shared as agreed. The basis for reporting and review under the climate change regime is established in the Convention, which requires all Parties to ‘make available to the Conference of the Parties’ emission inventories, and to submit regular ‘communications’. In their communications, all Parties are required to include an inventory of national GHG emissions and removals, and a general description of the steps they are taking or envisaging to implement the Convention, along with other information relevant to achieving the Convention's objective. The timetable, specific content and review process for these, however, differ between Annex I and non-Annex I Parties, in line with the differentiated nature of their climate change mitigation commitments.