Session 4: IPCC Inventory Software for National
GHG inventories – New
Functionalities in the AFOLU Sector

SBSTA - 56
8 June, 2022

Valentyna Slivinska – Sandro Federici
IPCC TFI TSUOverview of elements upgradedLand Representation Manager
Mineral soil SOC change – Equation 2.25
• Formulation A• Formulation B

Stock Difference Method
Wetlands Supplement
 additional Methods
 additional Categories

Land Representation Manager (LRM)• New Element of the IPCC Inventory Software• It manages Land Representation allowing to use any of the three IPCC
approaches:Approach 1 (no land use change identification)
Approach 2 (land use change identification)
Approach 3 (land use change identification and tracking across time)• It ensures consistency of land representation through tracing of units of land,• Unit of land: an area homogenous per physical conditions –i.e. climate/vegetation zone and soil type- and current and historical socio-economic functions –i.e. land use and management type-LRM – Regions Tab• A country can be represented in a single set of National data or in a number ofRegions• For each Region the approach applied for the land representation is to beselected

LRM – Land Representation Tab• All info on land use and land use changes is to be input in this Tab• A Table for each Region• Automatic check of area discrepancy

LRM – Land Representation Tab• Each unit of land gets assigned a code from the software on the basis of current
and previous land use/management• To ease the work of inventory compilers, an additional user defined code can beassigned to each unit of land

LRM – Land Representation Tab• Each unit of land is to be input in the software on the basis of current andprevious land use/management• Data input in the time series is to be done from its first year forward

LRM – Land Representation Tab• For each conversion: Transition Period and Conversion Year are to be input• Once input in an inventory year, the unit of land is copied by the software in all
years of the time series updating its “conversion-status” according to the time
passed since its conversion

LRM – Land Representation Tab

Additional functionalities• Area entry: once area of a unit of land is input the user may select the portionof the time series to which that are is to be assigned to the unit

• By default, the area is assigned to the current and subsequent years

LRM – Land Representation Tab

Additional functionalities• Button “P” (Pools) to assign to each C pool the method to estimate C stockchanges i.e. IPCC default method vs Stock-Difference method

LRM – Land Representation Tab

Additional functionalities• Button “C” (Conversion) to input a further conversion to a unit of land that is stillundergoing a conversion (no 20-year period passed since the previous conversion)

It is available in Approach 3 land representation only

LRM – Land Representation Tab
Additional functionalities• Button “M” (Merge) to merge a unit of land that has completely undergone
through the transition period.

Merging is allowed with any other unit with identical land use (category/subcategory/subdivision) as
well as with identical climate/vegetation zone and soil type.

It is available in Approaches 2 and 3 land representation only

LRM – Example – Approach 3
Land Representation of 3 units of land tracked across 1989-2009
ULTracking info
[FL - Forest Land; GL – Grassland]

AREA (ha)Inventory year

2000

2008

2009

3,000

1,500

0

5,000

5,000 6,500

01,500 1,500

8,000

8,000 8,000

FL - Forest Plantation (from Managed FL in 1989):
7.1a) In 2008, half unit of land is converted to UL7.3;b) In 2009, remaining portion is merged with UL7.2;

7.2

Forest Plantation (for any known years)

7.3

GL from 2008, from conversion of a portion of UL7.1
Total area of Land Representation

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2000
First data input

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2008
Splitting (new Input) and Conversion of the Unit of Land

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2008
Conversion Tab used for Unit 7.1

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2007
Adjustment of UL area in the previous inventory year

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2009
Merging ULs

LRM – EXAMPLE – Approach 3 – 2009
Final Status

Annual land representation matrix

No data Input, just for verification (not exportable yet)

Mineral soil SOC change – Equation 2.25

• The software applies the 2 formulations according to the approach for land
representation selected for the Region to which the unit of land belongs

SOC change – Formulation A - LRM

Approach 1 does not identify land-use conversions, thus:
 SOC changes are estimated by comparison of total SOC stock across theland representation (Region/Country) in the inventory year and 20 years
before the inventory year The Land Representation Manager requires for each unit of land to input thearea in the inventory year as well as the area of 20 years before

SOC change – Example
A unit of land of 1 ha has been converted twice over a 20-year period.
2020
1996
1991
Cropland (CL)Forest land (FL)
Grassland (GL)Land use (FLU)
SOCREF(natural vegetation)

FL = 1.00
CL = 1.00
GL = 1.00

FL = 1.00
CL = 1.00
GL = 1.14

FL = 1.00
CL = 0.80
GL = 1.00

Tillage (FMG)

50 t
C ha-1

SOC is assumed to be at equilibrium in 1990 - this means that no changes
in land use and/or management occurred during the 20 years prior to 1990.

Input (FI)

Year

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2020

Land Use Category

FLCLGLGLGLGLGLFL area (ha)1000000

CL area (ha)0100000

GL area (ha)0011111

SOC change – Example – Formulation A
A unit of land of 1 ha has been converted twice over a 20-year period.
Cropland (CL)Forest land (FL)2011 2020

1996

1991

Grassland (GL)Formulation A
Year

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2020

Land Use Category

FL

CLGL

GL

GL

GL

GL

FL area (ha)1000000

CL area (ha)0100000

GL area (ha)001111

1

SOC0_GHGI (t C)

50.00

40.00

57.00

57.00

57.00

57.00

57.00

SOC(0-T)_GHGI (t C)

50.00

50.00

50.00

50.00

50.00

40.00

57.00

∆C (t C yr-1)

0.00

-0.50

+0.35

+0.35

+0.35

+0.85

0.00

SOC change – Formulation A – Example
Calculation is made at “Region” level, in 1995 in our case we have:- a hypothetical SOC loss in FL,-a hypothetical SOC gain in CL,-

that correspond to a total real net SOC loss of 0.5 t C ha yr-1

SOC change – Formulation A – Example
Calculation is made at “Region” level, in 2015 in our case we have:- an artefact SOC loss in CL,- an artefact SOC gain in GL,-thus, a total net SOC gain of 0.85 t C ha yr-1

SOC change – Example – Formulation B
A unit of land of 1 ha has been converted twice over a 20-year period.
Cropland (CL)Forest land (FL)2011 2020

1996

1991

Grassland (GL)Formulation B
Year

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2020

Land Use Category

FLCLGL

GL

GL

GL

GL

FL area (ha)1000000

CL area (ha)0100000

GL area (ha)001111

1

SOC0_GHGI (t C)

50.00047.50049.875

52.25054.62557.00057.000

SOC(0-T)_GHGI (t C)

50.00050.00047.50049.87552.25054.62557.000∆C (t C ha-1 yr-1)

0.000-0.500+0.475+0.475+0.475+0.4750.000

SOC change – Formulation B – Example
Calculation is made at “Region” level, on the basis of the actual SOC stock in theSOM for each inventory year (land tracking). The unit of land “SOC test” has:
- In 1995, a net SOC loss of 0.5 tC ha yr-1
- In 2000, a net SOC gain of 0.475 tC ha yr-1

SOC change – Example
Across the entire timeseries both formulations count for the same quantity of net
SOC gain of 7 tC ha from a tropical dry forest to an improved grassland

Stock-Difference Method• Can be selected in the Land Representation Manager for each C pool(biomass/DOM/SOM) of each unit of land
• Each land use category has dedicated C-pool-specific worksheets for the StockDifference method, units of land for which the Stock-Difference method has
been selected for a C pool are automatically displayed in the Stock-differenceWorksheet of that C pool

SD Method – Example – 2000
Same units of land as per Land Representation example

SD Method – Example – 2008

1,500 ha clearcut and converted to grassland (no woody biomass)
Abrupt change within the Gain and Loss Method

SD Method – Example – 2009
5,000 ha clearcut at the beginning of the year

Wetlands Supplement• All elements sourced from the 2013 Supplement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines
for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories: Wetlands are clearly identifiablebecause of the liliac color has been used.
In particular, following methods have been added:
 CO2 emissions from Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) in drained Organic soils, in each land
use category (3.B)
 CO2 removals in rewetted organic soils, in each land use category (3.B)
 SOM loss from excavation of coastal wetlands (3.B.4/5)
 SOM burning in peatlands (3.C.1)
 N2O emissions from rewetted organic soils (3.C.4)

Wetlands Supplement• All elements sourced from the 2013 Supplement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines
for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories: Wetlands are clearly identifiablebecause of the liliac color has been used.
In particular, following categories have been added:
 3.C.8 CH4 emissions from Drained Inland organic soils
 3.C.9 CH4 emissions from Drainage Ditches in Drained Inland organic soils
 3.C.10 CH4 emissions from Rewetting of Inland organic soils
 3.C.11 CH4 emissions from Rewetting of Mangroves and Tidal Marshes
 3.C.12 N2O emissions from Aquaculture
 3.C.13 CH4 emissions from Rewetted and Created Wetlands on Inland Wetland mineral soils

Thank you
https://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/index.html