International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association

The  International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association describes itself as "the single global association representing both the upstream and downstream oil and gas industry on key global environmental and social issues" with a particular focus on lobbying the United Nations.

According to its Web site, IPIECA "aims to develop and promote scientifically-sound, cost-effective, practical, socially and economically acceptable solutions to global environmental and social issues pertaining to the oil and gas industry. IPIECA is not a lobbying organisation, but provides a forum for encouraging continuous improvement of industry performance."

Working Groups and Task Forces
IPIECA currently has a number of Working Groups and Task Forces, comprising: Climate Change; Biodiversity; Social Responsibility; Oil Spill; Operational, Fuels & Product Issues; Health and Sustainability Reporting.

Climate Change
The Climate Change Working Group (CCWG) was established in 1988. Its efforts focus on two major intergovernmental processes: scientific assessments by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); and negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

"Representatives from IPIECA, which holds formal UN observer status, attend all the negotiating sessions of the UNFCCC...The CCWG has published several documents concerning the UNFCCC, such as 'Climate Change - a Glossary of Terms'. This document defines and explains many of the arcane terms used in climate change discussions. The Glossary has been widely distributed within industry, government and UN observer organizations."

"The CCWG [also] acts as the focal point for the international oil and gas industry's interaction with the IPCC. Since the IPCC's formation, IPIECA has provided nominations of lead authors, extensive technical input to the peer review process and engagement in technical symposia. Four authors from IPIECA member companies participated in the Third Assessment Report...CCWG experts have contributed to a number of the IPCC’s recent activities including: The Fourth Assessment Report; Special Report on Carbon Capture and Storage; 2006 Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. Several IPCC related documents have also been produced by the CCWG. The most recent is the 4th Edition of 'A Guide to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change'."

In a May 2007 submission on the possible inclusion of Carbob Capture and Storage in the [[Clean Development Mechanism, IPIECA was rather ambivalent, simply stating that carbon dioxide capture and storage has been used to enhance oil recovery in some oil and gas fields and that over "the past several decades have stored roughly half a billion tonnes of CO2 in oil reservoirs." This experience, it stated, was relevant to consideration of risks of leakage, the operation of reservoirs and other potential environmental risks. (See Clean Development Mechanism and Carbon Capture and Storage for more details).

Contact Details
IPIECA 5th Floor 209-215 Blackfriars Road London SE1 8NL United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (020) 7633 2388 Fax: +44 (020) 7633 2389 Email: info AT ipieca.org Website: http://www.ipieca.org/

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