The Indonesian Government is committed to ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets. With a significant proportion of Indonesia’s total emissions generated by land-based activities, the sector is a major focus of mitigation efforts.
Understanding the size and source of historical emissions is critical to planning efficient and effective interventions, as well as gauging the potential impact of alternative land management options on future emissions. This is why the Indonesian Government is developing the Indonesian National Carbon Accounting System, or commonly known as INCAS.
The INCAS is a systematic approach for Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of GHG emissions, including for REDD+ activities. It is also designed to support Indonesia’s broader requirements under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). These include GHG reporting for the Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) sectors, and tracking progress against the country’s emissions reduction targets.
The INCAS is designed as a Tier 3 level GHG accounting system. It generates detailed information on historical, present, and future projections of emissions and removals from land-based activities. It can be scaled to provide GHG accounting at provincial and district (i.e. subnational) levels.
To date, the INCAS has been used to produce an annual account of GHG emissions and removals on all of Indonesia’s forest and peatland for 2001–2012 from key activities related to REDD+, namely: deforestation, forest degradation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks. Emissions from biological oxidation and fire on disturbed peatlands are also included. In the future, the INCAS will be expanded to include full coverage of AFOLU sectors.
The INCAS has been developed by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, with support and input from other agencies, such as the National Institute for Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN), the Ministry of Agriculture, and other national institutions. The Australian Government has supported the development phase of the INCAS: in partnership with the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and earlier under the Indonesia–Australia Forest Carbon Partnership (IAFCP).
More detail about the INCAS framework, methodology and current results are also available on this website.