Greenhouse gas emission inventory of Can Tho City using Bilan Carbone method

Abstract

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission inventory has always been considered a crucial first step towards any development of climate change mitigation plans and measures. In this paper, the Bilan Carbone (Carbon Balance) version 6, an easy-to-use Excel-based GHG inventory tool developed by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency, is used to make an inventory of GHG emissions generated within Can Tho City’s territory. The data used for the direct and indirect GHG emissions were collected from Can Tho City’s 2020 Statistical Yearbook, relevant businesses, and administrative units. Ten sectors, namely Energy Industry, Industrial Processes, Tertiary Sector, Residential Sector, Agriculture and Fishing, Transporting Goods, Travel by People, Construction and Highways, End-of-life Waste, and Food, were taken into account for the related analysis. Considering all GHGs cited in the Kyoto Protocol coupled with emission factors updated for Vietnam and the magnitude of emission sources, we found out that the total GHG emission of Can Tho City in 2020 is 4,311,952 tons of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e) with an average of approximately 3.5 tons of CO₂e per capita. Residential Sector, Industrial Processes, and Travel by People contribute the most to the total GHG footprint of the city, in which Residential Sector accounts for the largest share (743,346 tons of CO₂e, making up 17.2% of the total GHG emission). Industrial Processes ranks second with 727,504 tons of CO₂e (representing 16.9%), and Travel by People is third with 619,823 tons of CO₂e, accounting for 14.4%. Some scientific and realistic interpretations of such sectorial findings are also provided to facilitate the next step of initiating and carrying out associated GHG mitigation measures for the city.