Wisconsin Administrative Code › Department of Natural Resources › NR 400-499 - Environmental Protection - Air Pollution Control › Chapter NR 437 - Voluntary emission reduction registry › Section NR 437.02 - Definitions

Current through June 24, 2024
The definitions contained in ch. NR 400 apply to the terms
			  used in this chapter. In addition, the following definitions apply to the terms
			  used in this chapter:
(1) "Baseline"
			means the average annual amount or rate of a greenhouse gas or air contaminant
			emitted before an emission reduction or avoidance action is taken, or the
			amount of carbon stored before a carbon sequestration project is
			undertaken.
(2) "Carbon dioxide
			equivalent" means the amount of CO2 that would have the
			same global warming potential as a given amount of another greenhouse gas. The
			CO2 equivalent amount of any greenhouse gas is
			calculated by multiplying the mass of the greenhouse gas by the global warming
			potential for that gas.
(3) "Carbon
			reserve" means any system that takes in and stores more carbon from the
			atmosphere than it releases to the atmosphere.
(4) "Carbon sequestration" means the
			establishment or enhancement of a carbon reserve.
(5) "Fine particulate matter" means solid or
			liquid particles with a diameter less than or equal to 2.5 micrometers or
			emissions that are precursors to solid or liquid particles with a diameter less
			than or equal to 2.5 micrometers.
(6) "Global warming potential" means the
			potential over a 100 year time period for a greenhouse gas to cause warming of
			the earth's surface compared to the global warming potential of carbon dioxide
			over the same time period.
Note: The global warming potentials for most of the
			  greenhouse gases covered in this chapter are contained in IPCC Third Assessment
			  Report, Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis, Intergovernmental Panel on
			  Climate Change, 2001.
(7)
			"Greenhouse gas" means carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide,
			hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride or any other gas that
			traps heat in the atmosphere.
(8)
			"Law" means any federal or state statute, rule, order, mandatory emission
			limiting condition in an air permit or other legal requirement.
(9) "Mandatory emission limiting condition in
			an air permit" means a condition in an air pollution control permit that
			restricts emissions in order to comply with a federal or state statute, rule,
			order or other legal requirement or in order to avoid application of a federal
			or state statute, rule, order or other legal requirement. "Mandatory emission
			limiting condition in an air permit" does not include a permit condition that
			reflects a lower emission level that is the result of a voluntary action or a
			contractual agreement with the department, such as an agreement under the
			Environmental Cooperative Agreement program (s.
			299.80,
			Stats.), or a federal voluntary program.
(10) "Ozone precursor" means nitrogen oxides
			and volatile organic compounds.
(11) "Quantification protocol" means a
			replicable and workable method or set of methods for quantifying emissions,
			emission rates, or the amount of carbon sequestered.
(12) "Renewable energy project" means a
			project or facility that produces energy from a renewable resource.
(13) "Renewable resource" means any of the
			following: direct radiation from the sun, geothermal energy, wind, tidal or
			wave action, flowing water, biomass, human waste, or animal waste.
(14) "Voluntary emission reduction" or "VER"
			means any emission reduction, avoided emission or carbon sequestration that
			occurs before it is required by law or that results in emissions that are lower
			than those allowed by law.