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Greenhouse gas reporting

Help in your language: Free language assistance services are available to you. To request assistance in another language, email cdphe_apcd_outreach@state.co.us. Please include the topic and “language assistance” in the subject line. Please also link to the specific information you’d like to access, if possible, such as a web page or document.

Ayuda en el idioma de su preferencia: ofrecemos asistencia en el idioma de su preferencia, sin cargo alguno. Si desea solicitar asistencia en español o en otro idioma, envíe un correo electrónico a cdphe_apcd_outreach@state.co.us. Indique el tema y la frase “language assistance” (asistencia en otro idioma) como asunto de su mensaje. De ser posible, incluya un enlace a la información que desea consultar, como la página web o el documento.

Updates: On Nov. 7, 2024, the Air Pollution Control Division published an update to the Colorado Greenhouse Gas Inventory. The division recalculated statewide emissions estimates and found that the state is closer to achieving its near-term targets than previously expected.

On Oct. 16, 2024, the Air Quality Control Commission adopted updates to Regulation 22, Part A. The rule expands greenhouse emissions reporting requirements for several air pollution sources across the state, including municipal solid waste landfills. More than 30 landfills that did not previously report their greenhouse gas emissions must begin reporting their emissions by March 31, 2025.

The Greenhouse Gas Annual Emissions Reports were due March 31, 2024. The form is still open and can be accessed for corrections or additional submissions if needed.

Overview

In 2019, Colorado adopted Senate Bill 19-096. It requires sources of greenhouse gases to monitor and report their emissions to the state. These reports support Colorado’s work to reduce greenhouse gases and maintain an inventory. The bill supported Executive Order D 2017-015, which directed CDPHE to propose a greenhouse gas reporting rule mirroring the federal reporting rule under 40 CFR, Part 98, among other requirements. 
In 2020, the Air Quality Control Commission adopted the Colorado Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule under Air Quality Control Commission Regulation 22, Part A. The rule: 

  • Requires all greenhouse gas sources that are subject to the federal rule to also report emissions to the state. 
  • Expands reporting requirements to greenhouse gas sources that are not subject to the federal rule. 
  • Establishes supplemental data reporting requirements for Colorado electric service providers or utilities. This provides the division with the necessary data to assess compliance with the approved Clean Energy Plans. 
     

The state rule requires certain greenhouse gas sources to submit reports to the division regardless of the amount of greenhouse gases they emit annually. The sources include:

  • Electric service providers or utilities.
  • Natural gas local distribution companies.
  • Industrial waste landfills.
  • Industrial wastewater treatment operations.
  • Underground coal mines.

Facility Reported Greenhouse Gases Explorer

The Facility Reported Greenhouse Gases Explorer compiles facility-level direct greenhouse gas emissions, aligning data from both Colorado’s and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Programs. The tool complements the EPA’s FLIGHT website with the addition of Colorado-only reporters and unique dashboards for viewing aggregated data. It also enables users to explore and analyze annual emissions and trends at the state, county, and disproportionately impacted community level and by greenhouse gas and reporting category. By empowering users to engage with facility-reported emissions data in a dynamic way, it supports enhanced analyses and fosters greater transparency in greenhouse gas reporting. The tool will be updated annually.

Greenhouse gas reporting web portal and reporting form

The division established a reporting form to submit annual greenhouse gas reports, which can be accessed through the Emissions Reporting and Credit Tracking & Trading Portal. Sources subject to state reporting requirements must register and use the web portal and reporting form. The reporting deadline is March 31 of each year for the prior calendar year’s greenhouse gas emissions.

The division requires greenhouse gas sources subject to the state rule to use the Extensible Markup Language (XML) file generated for the facility or entity from the U.S. EPA’s Electronic Greenhouse Gas Reporting Tool (e-GGRT). The XML file contains the necessary greenhouse gas emissions data that must be reported. Greenhouse gas reporters subject to the state rule but not subject to the federal rule can still use e-GGRT to generate an XML file for reporting to the State of Colorado without reporting their greenhouse gas emissions to the EPA. There may be other required supporting documents, such as the e-GGRT Input Verifier Tool (IVT) file, that must be submitted with the XML file. The need for supporting documents depends on the type of reporter, methods used to calculate emissions, and other factors.

See the frequently asked questions for more details and answers to other questions regarding the greenhouse gas web portal and reporting form.

The e-GGRT Instructions document for Colorado greenhouse gas reporters provides detailed information on generating and downloading the correct XML file in e-GGRT for submission to the state.

Electric utility supplemental data reporting

Electric service providers or utilities that are subject to the state rule, as detailed under Regulation 22, Part A, Section IV.C., must submit supplemental data reports by June 30 of each year for the prior calendar year. Annual reports must be completed using the division’s form. The 2024 Electric Utility Supplemental Data form has been updated for reporting year 2023. The completed form must be uploaded to the Greenhouse Gas Annual Emissions Reporting form.

The updates for reporting year 2023 include a new tab in the form with entries for retail, wholesale, and market sales. These inputs are necessary “for the Division to track the progress of GHG reductions from plans that have been approved by the Public Utilities Commission” per Section IV.C.2. Collection of this data is required starting January 1 of the year following approval of a plan. For reporting year 2023, the population of sales data is required only for utilities with Clean Energy Plans approved before December 31, 2022.

To access the Electric Utility Supplemental Data Form from prior years, contact climatechange@state.co.us.