Washington Administrative Code › Title 173 - Ecology, Department of (See also Titles 197, 317, 372, and 508) › Chapter 173-446 - Climate Commitment Act program rule › GENERAL REQUIREMENTS › Section 173-446-020 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
				  unless the context clearly requires otherwise. For those terms not listed in
				  this section, the definitions found in chapters 173-441 and 173-446A WAC apply
				  in this chapter.
"Additional" means, in the context of the offset provisions
				  of this rule, greenhouse gas emission reductions or removals that exceed any
				  greenhouse gas reduction or removals otherwise required by law, regulation or
				  legally binding mandate, and that exceed any greenhouse gas reductions or
				  removals that would otherwise occur in a business-as-usual scenario.
"Adverse offset verification statement" means an offset
				  verification statement rendered by a verification body attesting that the
				  verification body cannot say with reasonable assurance that the submitted
				  offset project data report is free of an offset material misstatement, or that
				  it cannot attest that the offset project data report conforms to the
				  requirements of this chapter or applicable compliance offset protocol.
"Affiliated registered entities" means registered entities in
				  a direct or indirect corporate association.
"Aggregation" means, in the context of offsets, a grouping of
				  offset projects carried out according to the same compliance offset protocol
				  and under the responsibility of the same offset project developer or
				  operator.
"Allowance" means an authorization to emit up to one metric
				  ton of carbon dioxide equivalent.
"Allowance price containment reserve" means an account
				  maintained by ecology with allowances available for sale through separate
				  reserve auctions at predefined prices to assist in containing compliance costs
				  for covered and opt-in entities in the event of unanticipated high costs for
				  compliance instruments.
"Annual allowance budget" means the total number of GHG
				  allowances allocated for auction and distribution for one calendar year by
				  ecology.
"Asset controlling supplier" or "ACS" has the same meaning as
				  in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"Auction" means the process of selling GHG allowances by
				  offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then distributing the allowances to
				  winning bidders.
"Auction floor price" means a price for allowances below
				  which bids at auction are not eligible to be accepted.
"Auction purchase limit" means the limit on the number of
				  allowances one registered entity or a group of affiliated registered entities
				  may purchase from the share of allowances sold at an auction.
"Auction settlement price" means the price announced by
				  ecology at the conclusion of each auction that all successful bidders pay for
				  each allowance.
"Authorized project designee" means an entity authorized by
				  an offset project operator to act on behalf of the offset project operator. The
				  authorized project designee must be a primary account representative or
				  alternate account representative on the offset project operator's holding
				  account.
"Balancing authority" means the responsible party that
				  integrates resource plans ahead of time, maintains load-interchange generation
				  balance within a balancing authority area, and supports interconnection
				  frequency in real time.
"Balancing authority area" means the collection of
				  generation, transmission, and load within the metered boundaries of a balancing
				  authority. A balancing authority maintains load-resource balance within this
				  area.
"Banking" means the holding of compliance instruments from
				  one compliance period for the purpose of sale or use for compliance in a future
				  compliance period.
"Best available technology" or "BAT" means a technology or
				  technologies that will achieve the greatest reduction in GHG emissions, taking
				  into account the fuels, processes, and equipment used by facilities to produce
				  goods of comparable type, quantity, and quality. Best available technology must
				  be technically feasible, commercially available, economically viable, not
				  create excessive environmental impacts, and be compliant with all applicable
				  laws while not changing the characteristics of the good being
				  manufactured.
"Biomass" means nonfossilized and biodegradable organic
				  material originating from plants, animals, and microorganisms, including
				  products, by-products, residues, and waste from agriculture, forestry, and
				  related industries as well as the nonfossilized and biodegradable organic
				  fractions of municipal wastewater and industrial waste, including gases and
				  liquids recovered from the decomposition of nonfossilized and biodegradable
				  organic material.
"Biomass-derived fuels," "biomass fuels," or "biofuels" means
				  fuels derived from biomass that have at least 40 percent lower GHG emissions
				  based on a full life-cycle analysis when compared to petroleum fuels for which
				  biofuels are capable as serving as a substitute.
"Bundled transaction" means the retail sale of two or more
				  products, except real property or services to real property, where:
(a) The products are otherwise distinct and identifiable;
				  and
(b) The products are sold for one nonitemized price.
A bundled transaction does not include the sale of any
				  products in which the sale price varies or is negotiable, based on the
				  selection by the purchaser of the products included in the transaction.
"Business-as-usual scenario" means, in the context of
				  offsets, the set of conditions reasonably expected to occur within the offset
				  project boundary in the absence of the financial incentives provided by offset
				  credits, taking into account all current laws and regulations, as well as
				  current economic and technological trends.
"Cap and invest consultant or advisor" means an individual or
				  party that meets the criteria in WAC 173-446-056.
"Carbon dioxide equivalents" or "CO2e"
				  has the same meaning as in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"Carbon dioxide removal" or "greenhouse gas removal" means
				  deliberate human activities removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
				  durably storing it in geological, terrestrial, or ocean reservoirs, or in
				  products. "Carbon dioxide removal" includes existing and potential
				  anthropogenic enhancement of biological or geochemical sinks and including, but
				  not limited to, carbon mineralization and direct air capture and
				  storage.
"Closed electricity importer" means an electricity importer
				  that has elected to permanently stop providing or importing electric power into
				  Washington.
"Closed facility" means a facility at which the current owner
				  or operator has elected to permanently stop production and will no longer be an
				  emissions source.
"Closed supplier" means a supplier that has elected to
				  permanently stop supplying any of the materials that trigger coverage as a
				  supplier under chapter 70A.65 RCW and this chapter.
"Compliance instrument" means an allowance or offset credit
				  issued by ecology or by an external GHG emissions trading program to which
				  Washington has linked its cap and invest program. One compliance instrument is
				  equal to one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent.
"Compliance obligation" means the requirement to submit to
				  ecology the number of compliance instruments equivalent to a covered or opt-in
				  entity's covered emissions during the compliance period.
"Compliance offset protocol" means an offset protocol adopted
				  by ecology.
"Compliance period" means the four-year period for which the
				  compliance obligation is calculated for covered entities.
"Conservative" means, in the context of offsets, utilizing
				  project baseline assumptions, emission factors, and methodologies that are more
				  likely than not to understate net GHG reductions or GHG removal enhancements
				  for an offset project to address uncertainties affecting the calculation or
				  measurement of GHG reductions or GHG removal enhancements.
"Cost burden" means the impact on rates or charges to
				  customers of electric utilities in Washington for the incremental cost of
				  electricity service to serve load due to the compliance cost for GHG emissions
				  caused by the program. Cost burden includes administrative costs from the
				  utility's participation in the program.
"Covered emissions" means the emissions described in WAC
				  173-446-040 for which a covered entity has a compliance obligation under this
				  chapter.
"Covered entity" means a person that is designated by ecology
				  as subject to this chapter as specified in WAC 173-446-030 or 173-446-060. Each
				  facility, supplier, or first jurisdictional deliverer serving as an electricity
				  importer is a separate covered entity.
"Crediting baseline" refers to the reduction of absolute GHG
				  emissions below the business-as-usual scenario after the imposition of
				  greenhouse gas emission reduction requirements or incentives.
"Crediting period" means the predetermined period of time for
				  which an offset project will remain eligible to be issued ecology offset
				  credits or registry offset credits for verified GHG emission reductions or GHG
				  removal enhancements.
"Curtailed electric power entity" means an electric power
				  entity at which the owner or operator has temporarily suspended operations but
				  for which the owner or operator maintains any necessary permits and retains the
				  option to resume business if conditions become amenable.
"Curtailed facility" means a facility at which the owner or
				  operator has temporarily suspended production but for which the owner or
				  operator maintains operating permits and retains the option to resume
				  production if conditions become amenable.
"Curtailed supplier" means a supplier at which the owner or
				  operator has temporarily suspended operations but for which the owner or
				  operator maintains any necessary permits and retains the option to resume
				  business if conditions become amenable.
"Direct corporate association" means a group of parties that
				  meet the requirements in WAC 173-446-105 to be a direct corporate
				  association.
"Direct environmental benefits in the state" means, in the
				  context of offsets, environmental benefits accomplished through the reduction
				  or avoidance of emissions of any air pollutant in the state or the reduction or
				  avoidance of the release of any pollutant that could have an adverse impact on
				  land or waters of the state.
"Direct GHG emission reduction" means a reduction of GHG
				  emissions from applicable GHG emission sources, GHG sinks, or GHG reservoirs
				  that are under control of an offset project operator or authorized project
				  designee.
"Direct GHG removal enhancement" means a GHG removal
				  enhancement from applicable GHG emission sources, GHG sinks, or GHG reservoirs
				  under control of the offset project operator or authorized project
				  designee.
"Ecology" means the Washington state department of ecology or
				  its agents, including the auction administrator and the financial services
				  administrator retained by ecology pursuant to
				  RCW
				     70A.65.100(3).
"Electric power entity" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Electricity importer" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Emissions containment reserve allowance" means a conditional
				  allowance that is withheld from sale at an auction by ecology or its agent to
				  secure additional emissions reductions in the event prices fall below the
				  emissions containment reserve trigger price, or any other allowance placed into
				  the emissions containment reserve.
"Emissions containment reserve trigger price" means the price
				  below which allowances will be withheld from sale at an auction by ecology, as
				  determined by ecology by rule unless ecology has suspended the emissions
				  containment reserve trigger price.
"Emissions threshold" means the GHG emission level at or
				  above which a person has a compliance obligation under this chapter.
"Emissions year" means the calendar year in which GHG
				  emissions occur.
"Environmental benefits" means activities that:
(a) Prevent or reduce existing environmental harms or
				  associated risks that contribute significantly to cumulative environmental
				  health impacts;
(b) Prevent or mitigate impacts to overburdened communities
				  or vulnerable populations from, or support community response to, the impacts
				  of environmental harm; or
(c) Meet a community need formally identified to a covered
				  agency by an overburdened community or vulnerable population that is consistent
				  with the intent of chapter 70A.02 RCW.
"Environmental harm" means the individual or cumulative
				  environmental health impacts and risks to communities caused by historic,
				  current, or projected:
(a) Exposure to pollution, conventional or toxic pollutants,
				  environmental hazards, or other contamination in the air, water, and
				  land;
(b) Adverse environmental effects, including exposure to
				  contamination, hazardous substances, or pollution that increase the risk of
				  adverse environmental health outcomes or create vulnerabilities to the impacts
				  of climate change;
(c) Loss or impairment of ecosystem functions or traditional
				  food resources or loss of access to gather cultural resources or harvest
				  traditional foods; or
(d) Health and economic impacts from climate change.
"Environmental impacts" means environmental benefits or
				  environmental harms, or the combination of environmental benefits and harms,
				  resulting or expected to result from a proposed action.
"Environmental justice council" means the council established
				  in
				  RCW
				     70A.02.110.
"External GHG emissions trading program" or "external GHG
				  ETS" means a government program, other than Washington's program created in
				  this chapter, that restricts GHG emissions from sources outside of Washington
				  and that allows emissions trading.
"Facility" has the same meaning as in chapter 173-441
				  WAC.
"Federal power marketing administration" means any of the
				  four federal power marketing administrations that operate electric systems and
				  sell the electrical output of federally owned and operated hydroelectric dams
				  in the United States.
"First jurisdictional deliverer" means the owner or operator
				  of an electric generating facility in Washington state or an electricity
				  importer.
"Forest buffer account" means a holding account for ecology
				  offset credits issued to forest offset projects. It is used as a general
				  insurance mechanism against unintentional reversals, for all forest offset
				  projects listed under a compliance offset protocol.
"Forest owner" means the owner of any interest in the real
				  property on which a forest offset project is located, excluding government
				  agency or other third-party beneficiaries of conservation easements. Generally,
				  a forest owner is the owner in fee of the real property on which a forest
				  offset project is located. In some cases, one party may be the owner in fee
				  while another party may have an interest in the trees or the timber on the
				  property, in which case all parties with interest in the real property are
				  collectively considered the forest owners; however, a single forest owner must
				  be identified as the offset project operator.
"General market participant" means a registered entity that
				  is not identified as a covered entity or an opt-in entity that is registered in
				  the program registry and intends to purchase, hold, sell, or voluntarily retire
				  compliance instruments.
"Greenhouse gas" or "GHG" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Greenhouse gas emission reduction" or "GHG emission
				  reduction" or "greenhouse gas reduction" or "GHG reduction" means a calculated
				  decrease in GHG emissions relative to a project baseline over a specified
				  period of time.
"Greenhouse gas emissions source" or "GHG emissions source"
				  means, in the context of offsets, any type of emitting activity that releases
				  greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
"Greenhouse gas removal enhancement" or "GHG removal
				  enhancement" means a calculated increase in GHG removals relative to a project
				  baseline.
"Greenhouse gas reservoir" or "GHG reservoir" means a
				  physical unit or component of the biosphere, geosphere, or hydrosphere with the
				  capability to store, accumulate, or release a GHG removed from the atmosphere
				  by a GHG sink or a GHG captured from a GHG emission source.
"Greenhouse gas sink" or "GHG sink" means a physical unit or
				  process that removes a GHG from the atmosphere.
"Holding limit" means the maximum number of allowances that
				  may be held for use or trade by a registered entity at any one time.
"Imported electricity" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Indirect corporate association" means a group of parties
				  that meet the requirements in WAC 173-446-105 to be an indirect corporate
				  association.
"Initial crediting period" means the crediting period that
				  begins with the first day of the first reporting period which receives a
				  positive offset or qualified positive offset verification statement and has
				  that offset verification statement approved by ecology.
"Intentional reversal" means any reversal, except as provided
				  below, which is caused by a forest owner's negligence, gross negligence, or
				  willful intent, including harvesting, development, and harm to the area within
				  the offset project boundary, or caused by approved growth models overestimating
				  carbon stocks. A reversal caused by an intentional back burn set by, or at the
				  request of, a local, state, or federal fire protection agency for the purpose
				  of protecting forestlands from an advancing wildfire that began on another
				  property through no negligence, gross negligence, or willful misconduct of the
				  forest owner is not considered an intentional reversal but, rather, an
				  unintentional reversal. Receiving adverse offset verification statements on two
				  consecutive offset verifications after the end of the final crediting period
				  will be considered an intentional reversal.
"Lead offset verifier" means a party that has met all the
				  requirements in WAC
				  173-441-085(7) and who may act as the lead verifier of an offset verification team providing
				  offset verification services or as a lead verifier providing an independent
				  review of offset verification services rendered.
"Lead offset verifier independent reviewer" or "independent
				  offset reviewer" means a lead offset verifier within a verification body who
				  has not participated in conducting offset verification services for an offset
				  project developer or authorized project designee for the current offset project
				  data report and who provides an independent review of offset verification
				  services rendered for an offset project developer or authorized project
				  designee as required in WAC 173-446-530. The independent reviewer is not
				  required to also meet the requirements for a sector specific or offset project
				  specific verifier.
"Leakage" means a reduction in emissions of GHGs within the
				  state that is offset by a directly attributable increase in GHG emissions
				  outside the state and outside the geography of another jurisdiction with a
				  linkage agreement with Washington.
"Limits" means the GHG emissions reductions required by
				  RCW
				     70A.45.020.
"Linkage" means a bilateral or multilateral decision under a
				  linkage agreement between GHG market programs to accept compliance instruments
				  issued by a participating jurisdiction to meet the obligations of regulated
				  entities in a partner jurisdiction and to otherwise coordinate activities to
				  facilitate operation of a joint market.
"Linkage agreement" means a nonbinding agreement that
				  connects two or more GHG market programs and articulates a mutual understanding
				  of how the participating jurisdictions will work together to facilitate a
				  connected GHG market.
"Linked jurisdiction" means a jurisdiction with which
				  Washington has entered into a linkage agreement.
"Market position" means the combination of the current and/or
				  expected holdings of compliance instruments by a registered entity and the
				  current and/or expected covered emissions of that registered entity.
"Market sensitive information" means information related to
				  registered entities, or their participation in the cap and invest program that
				  is not otherwise publicly available, and for which ecology determines that the
				  public interest in disclosure is outweighed by the public interest served by
				  maintaining the confidentiality of such information, on the basis that its
				  disclosure would be reasonably expected to have an effect on the price or value
				  of allowances or offset credits and/or enable a registered entity to engage in
				  market manipulation such as bidder collusion, market cornering, or extortion of
				  other market participant. "Market sensitive information" does not include data
				  reported under chapter 173-441 WAC, except to the extent that the disclosure of
				  such data for a particular emission year at any time prior to November 15th of
				  the following calendar year would enable a registered entity to engage in
				  market manipulation. "Market sensitive information" also does not include
				  anonymized information about the contents of registered entities' holding
				  accounts that is publicly displayed pursuant to
				  RCW
				     70A.65.090(7)(b), except to
				  the extent that the disclosure of such information that is less than 45 days
				  old would enable a registered entity to engage in market manipulation.
"Multijurisdictional consumer-owned utility" has the same
				  meaning as in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"Multijurisdictional electric company" has the same meaning
				  as in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"NERC e-tag" or "e-tag" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Offset credit" means a tradable compliance instrument that
				  represents an emissions reduction or emissions removal of one metric ton of
				  carbon dioxide equivalent.
"Offset material misstatement" means a discrepancy, omission,
				  misreporting, or aggregation of the three, identified in the course of offset
				  verification services that leads an offset verification team to conclude that
				  an offset project data report contains errors resulting in an overstatement of
				  the reported total GHG emission reductions or GHG removal enhancements by
				  greater than five percent. Discrepancies, omissions, or misreporting, or an
				  aggregation of the three, that result in an understatement of total reported
				  GHG emission reductions or GHG removal enhancements in the offset project data
				  report is not an offset material misstatement.
"Offset project" means a project that reduces or removes GHG
				  that are not covered emissions under this chapter.
"Offset project boundary" is defined by and includes all GHG
				  emission sources, GHG sinks, and GHG reservoirs that are affected by an offset
				  project and under control of the offset project operator or authorized project
				  designee. GHG emissions sources, GHG sinks or GHG reservoirs not under control
				  of the offset project operator or authorized project designee are not included
				  in the offset project boundary.
"Offset project data report" means the report prepared by an
				  offset project operator or authorized project designee each reporting period
				  that provides the information, documentation, and attestations required by this
				  chapter or a compliance offset protocol. An unattested report is not a valid
				  offset project data report, and therefore cannot be used to satisfy any
				  deadlines regarding submittal of an offset project data report.
"Offset project listing" or "listing" means the information,
				  documentation, and attestations required by this chapter or a compliance offset
				  protocol that an offset project operator or authorized project designee has
				  submitted to ecology or an offset project registry, and that has been reviewed
				  for completeness by ecology and/or the offset project registry and publicly
				  listed by ecology or the offset project registry for an initial or renewed
				  crediting period. An offset project listing must include the attestations
				  required by this chapter in order to be considered complete by ecology or the
				  offset project registry.
"Offset project operator" means the party(ies) with legal
				  authority to implement the offset project. Only a primary account
				  representative or alternate account representative may sign listing documents,
				  an offset project data report, a request for issuance, or attestations on
				  behalf of the offset project operator.
"Offset project registry" means a party that meets the
				  requirements of this chapter and is approved by ecology that lists offset
				  projects, collects offset project data reports, facilitates verification of
				  offset project data reports, and issues registry offset credits for offset
				  projects being implemented using a compliance offset protocol.
"Offset protocols" means a set of procedures and standards to
				  quantify GHG reductions or GHG removals achieved by an offset project.
"Offset verification" means a systematic, independent, and
				  documented process for evaluation of an offset project operator's or authorized
				  project designee's offset project data report against ecology compliance offset
				  protocols and this chapter for calculating and reporting project baseline
				  emissions, project emissions, GHG reductions, and GHG removal
				  enhancements.
"Offset verification body" means a firm accredited or
				  recognized by ecology, which is able to render an offset verification statement
				  and provide offset verification services for offset project operators or
				  authorized project designees subject to providing an offset project data report
				  under this chapter.
"Offset verification services" means services provided during
				  offset verification, including reviewing an offset project operator's or
				  authorized project designee's offset project data report, verifying its
				  accuracy according to the standards specified in WAC 173-446-535 and the
				  applicable compliance offset protocol, assessing the offset project operator's
				  or authorized project designee's compliance with this chapter and applicable
				  compliance offset protocol, and submitting an offset verification statement to
				  ecology or an offset project registry.
"Offset verification statement" means the final statement
				  rendered by a verification body attesting whether an offset project operator's
				  or authorized project designee's offset project data report is free of an
				  offset material misstatement, and whether the offset project data report
				  conforms to the requirements of this chapter and applicable compliance offset
				  protocol, and containing the attestations required pursuant to this
				  chapter.
"Offset verification team" means all parties working for a
				  verification body, including all subcontractors, to provide offset verification
				  services for an offset project operator or authorized project designee.
"Opt-in entity" means a party responsible for greenhouse gas
				  emissions that is not a covered entity but voluntarily participates in the
				  program as authorized under
				  RCW
				     70A.65.090(3).
"Overburdened community" means a geographic area where
				  vulnerable populations face combined, multiple environmental harms and health
				  impacts or risks due to exposure to environmental pollutants or contaminants
				  through multiple pathways, which may result in significant disparate adverse
				  health outcomes or effects.
"Overburdened community" includes, but is not limited
				  to:
(a) Highly impacted communities as defined in
				  RCW
				     19.405.020;
(b) Communities located in census tracts that are fully or
				  partially on "Indian country" as defined in  18 U.S.C. Sec. 1151; and
(c) Populations, including Native Americans or immigrant
				  populations, who may be exposed to environmental contaminants and pollutants
				  outside of the geographic area in which they reside based on the populations'
				  use of traditional or cultural foods and practices, such as the use of
				  resources, access to which is protected under treaty rights in ceded areas,
				  when those exposures in conjunction with other exposures may result in
				  disproportionately greater risks, including risks of certain cancers or other
				  adverse health effects and outcomes.
(d) Overburdened communities identified by ecology shall
				  include the same communities as those identified by ecology through its process
				  for identifying overburdened communities under
				  RCW
				     70A.02.010.
"Party" means an individual, person, firm, association,
				  organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, limited liability
				  company, company, or government agency.
"Permanent" means, in the context of offsets, either that GHG
				  reductions and GHG removal enhancements are not reversible, or when GHG
				  reductions and GHG removal enhancements may be reversible, that mechanisms are
				  in place to replace any reversed GHG emission reductions and GHG removal
				  enhancements to ensure that all credited reductions endure for at least the
				  length of time specified in the associated offset protocol.
"Person" includes: An owner or operator of a facility; a
				  supplier; or an electric power entity.
"Point of delivery" has the same meaning as in chapter
				  173-441 WAC.
"Positive offset verification statement" means an offset
				  verification statement rendered by a verification body attesting that the
				  verification body can say with reasonable assurance that the submitted offset
				  project data report is free of an offset material misstatement and that the
				  offset project data report conforms to the requirements of this chapter and
				  applicable compliance offset protocol.
"Price ceiling unit" means a unit issued at a fixed price by
				  ecology for the purpose of limiting price increases and funding further
				  investments in GHG reductions.
"Program" means the GHG emissions cap and invest program
				  created by chapter 70A.65 RCW and implemented pursuant to this chapter.
"Program registry" means the data system in which covered
				  entities, opt-in entities, and general market participants are registered and
				  in which compliance instruments are recorded and tracked.
"Project baseline" means, in the context of a specific offset
				  project, a conservative estimate of business-as-usual GHG emission reductions
				  or GHG removal enhancements for the offset project's GHG emission sources, GHG
				  sinks, or GHG reservoirs within the offset project boundary.
"Qualified positive offset verification statement" means an
				  offset verification statement rendered by a verification body attesting that
				  the verification body can say with reasonable assurance that the submitted
				  offset project data report is free of an offset material misstatement, but the
				  offset project data report may include one or more nonconformance(s) with this
				  chapter and applicable compliance offset protocol which do not result in an
				  offset material misstatement. Nonconformance, in this context, does not include
				  disregarding the explicit requirements of this chapter or applicable compliance
				  offset protocol and substituting alternative requirements not approved by
				  ecology.
"Registered entity" means a covered entity, opt-in entity, or
				  general market participant that has completed the process for registration in
				  the program registry.
"Registration applicant" means a covered entity, opt-in
				  entity, or general market participant that is applying to register in the
				  program registry.
"Registry offset credit" means a credit issued by an offset
				  project registry for a GHG reduction or GHG removal enhancement of one metric
				  ton of CO2e.
"Reporter" has the same meaning as in chapter 173-441
				  WAC.
"Reporting period" means, in the context of offsets, the
				  period of time for which an offset project operator or authorized project
				  designee quantifies and reports GHG reductions or GHG removal enhancements
				  covered in an offset project data report. An offset project's reporting period
				  is established in the project listing documentation, but may be modified
				  pursuant to WAC 173-446-525(11).
"Retail electric load" has the same meaning as specified in
				  RCW
				     19.405.020.
"Retire" means to permanently remove a compliance instrument
				  such that the compliance instrument may never be sold, traded, used for
				  compliance, or otherwise used again.
"Retirement account" means the account to which ecology
				  transfers compliance instruments that have been surrendered for
				  compliance.
"Sector" means an area of the economy in which a grouping of
				  sources of greenhouse gas emissions share the same or related activity,
				  product, or service.
"Sequestration" means the removal of carbon dioxide from the
				  atmosphere and storage of carbon in GHG sinks or GHG reservoirs through
				  physical or biological processes.
"Specified source of electricity" or "specified source" has
				  the same meaning as in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"Supplier" has the same meaning as in chapter 173-441
				  WAC.
"Tier 1 price" means the lower of the two prices set by
				  ecology for allowances auctioned from the allowance price containment
				  reserve.
"Tier 2 price" means the higher of the two prices set by
				  ecology for allowances auctioned from the allowance price containment
				  reserve.
"Total program baseline" means the total of covered
				  greenhouse gas emissions from covered entities as established in WAC
				  173-446-200.
"Tribal lands" has the same meaning as defined in
				  RCW
				     70A.02.010.
"Unintentional reversal" means any reversal, including
				  wildfires or disease, that is not the result of the forest owner's negligence,
				  gross negligence, or willful intent.
"Unspecified source of electricity" or "unspecified source"
				  has the same meaning as in chapter 173-441 WAC.
"Vintage year" means the annual allowance allocation budget
				  year to which an individual Washington GHG allowance is assigned.
"Voluntary renewable reserve account" or "voluntary renewable
				  electricity reserve account" means a holding account maintained by ecology from
				  which allowances may be retired for voluntary renewable electricity generation,
				  which is directly delivered to the state and has not and will not be sold or
				  used to meet any other mandatory requirements in the state or any other
				  jurisdiction, on behalf of voluntary renewable energy purchasers or end
				  users.