In May 2024, the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (Department) published a reform options paper on the ACCU scheme’s landfill gas methods.1 The paper proposes five changes to the methods.

1. Extend the crediting periods of existing landfill gas projects for an undefined period, subject to 5-yearly baseline reviews. Most of the large landfill gas sites have been receiving carbon credits for 15-20 years. The proposal is seemingly to provide credits to the sector on an ongoing basis.

2. Reset the default baseline proportion for generation and flaring-only projects to 36%, with the exception of upgrade projects with baselines ≥36%.

3. Increase the default baseline proportion by 1.9% per year (inflation factor), with 5-yearly reviews of the baseline proportion and inflation factor. The application of the inflation factor would mean the 36% default baseline proportion would increase to 37.9% in the 2nd year after it comes into effect, then 39.8% in the 3rd year and so on over time, unless adjusted in the 5-yearly reviews.

4. Upgrade projects with baselines ≥36% will be required to continue to use these higher baselines until the increasing default baseline proportion reaches their baseline. At this point, their baseline will increase in line with the default baseline proportion.

5. Introduce a requirement for projects to measure the methane (CH4) proportion of captured biogas, with the exception of flaring-only projects at closed landfills, which would be allowed to use a default CH4 proportion of 30%. This proposal is not controversial.