As national carbon policies are enacted, greenhouse gas accounting and carbon footprinting will become mandatory reporting requirements for many businesses and organizations.

A course that addresses these accounting processes will be offered Spring Term at Oregon Institute of Technology. The 400-level course is co-listed in both Renewable Energy Engineering and Environmental Sciences departments and is called “Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Footprinting.” The REE 407/ENV 407 course starts March 29 and there are some pre-requisites to registration. Those who aren't currently enrolled at OIT should contact the OIT Distance Education office at (866) 497-0008 to register.

In addition to OIT students, this online course is also designed to appeal to environmental, health, safety, and risk managers of companies who may find this course beneficial as it will prepare them for the mandatory reporting they’ll need to do beginning in 2011. Today, large industrial emitters (those who produce over 25,000 tons/year) are required to report under the current Environmental Protection Agency rules. New requirements will be phased in during the next five years, affecting many more businesses.

The course covers the following: climate change science; environmental regulation and carbon policy; greenhouse gas emission measurement and reporting; tools, protocols and requirements; mitigation and offset strategies; carbon credits; carbon offsets; cap and trade schemes; taxes; and voluntary management programs.

OIT’s course is unique in that it sets greenhouse gas management in the larger context of environmental management and ecological footprinting, introduces the two most widely used accounting protocols, provides step-by-step tutorials for two calculation tools, and provides examples of real-world data and documents.

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