Institutional Leadership Advances SLCP Planning in Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic’s CCAC-supported project to Strengthen National SLCP Planning and Implementation Processes while Increasing Action on Methane Mitigation will provide technical assistance to support the Dominican Republic’s National Council for Climate Change and Clean Development Mechanism to strengthen short-lived climate pollutant (SLCP) planning efforts and advance mitigation actions identified in previous CCAC projects.

The Dominican Republic’s experience with developing its national methane roadmap parallel many features which have contributed to the success its regional neighbour Colombia. The first key feature is long-term planning and institutional capacity building.  

The CCAC has been supporting the Dominican Republic’s efforts to mitigate SCLPs since 2018. By 2020 initial efforts to train local specialists in LEAP assessments and other capacity building led to the publication of the Dominican Republic’s first SLCP emission inventory. This baseline understanding of SLCP emissions helped the Dominican Republic to mention SLCPs in their 2021 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) update. That NDC included a statement that the Dominican Republic would be looking to set specific targets to reduce SLCPs in its next NDC update. The accumulation of institutional capacity from this work meant that by 2023, when the methane roadmap began, ministerial staff and sectoral experts had existing skills and data to work with.

The Dominican Republic’s methane roadmap development also benefitted from the use of the CCAC’s standardized methodology which could be adapted to the local country context. The availability of this methodology enables countries’ methane roadmaps to become practical documents to help fulfill commitments under the Global Methane Pledge. Using the same methodology also creates a crucial level playing field for comparing countries’ actions to fulfill their commitments.  The project has coordinated the development of the roadmap through regular working meetings with stakeholders in the agriculture and waste sectors.

Efforts to strengthen SLCP planning in the Dominican Republic’s complement the country’s existing regulatory framework, which already includes regulations for some SLCPs such as black carbon and HFCs. The Dominican Republic also has a unique institutional arrangement which raises the priority of climate and clean air action through its National Council for Climate Change and Clean Development Mechanism (The Council). The Council is led by the President of Dominican Republic, contains representatives from all ministries and sectors within it. The Council is responsible for setting all policies on climate change within the government. Decisions on climate change made within the Council are done collaboratively with both vertical and horizontal integration.

In parallel to the development of the Methane Roadmap, the CCAC is supporting The Council to develop stronger tools for monitoring and mitigating other SLCPs. This includes capacity building support for technical staff within key ministries such as the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture to conduct assessments at IPCC Tier 2 levels. This helps staff to evaluate the consequences of implementing different policies and measures at greater levels of accuracy. In areas such as agriculture, enhanced accuracy helps improve the range of targeted solutions available to policy makers which can both maintain food security while reducing emissions. As a result of this training Dominican Republic’s methane roadmap includes Tier 2 methane emissions and mitigation assessments for both the agriculture and waste sector.  

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The theory of change for SLCP planning applied in the Dominican Republic, based on CCAC-standardised methodologies and previously applied in countries such as Nigeria and Colombia. 

The Dominican Republic is already developing projects to implement methane mitigation actions, such as through the processing of organic waste in the national school system with Black Soldier Fly technology and strengthening national capacities to contribute to mitigating enteric fermentation methane emissions by promoting climate-smart practices for the livestock sector in the Dominican Republic . Other SLCP actions being pursued by the Dominican Republic include reducing HFCs through the proper management of banks and mandating low-warming potential technology, with funding linked to carbon credit schemes. The Dominican Republic is also targeting the energy efficiency angle of reducing the climate impact of cooling by increasing national standards.

The draft of the Methane Roadmap is currently being shared with stakeholders including the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Environment and FAO for feedback.