Perrin Quarles to Develop Australia's Emissions Trading Registry

Australia's Department of Climate Change selected Perrin Quarles Associates, Inc., an environmental consultant focusing on air quality and climate change, to develop, implement, and support an emissions trading registry software solution that meets Kyoto Protocol requirements and will support the operation of Australia's Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, according to a Sept. 26 press release.

The registry is expected to be Kyoto Protocol-compliant by the end of 2008. This includes conformance to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Data Exchange Standards under the Kyoto Protocol as well as initialization with the International Transaction Log, an application designed to verify all international emissions unit trading and transactions under the Kyoto Protocol. Target completion for a fully integrated and operational system is December, 2009.

The firm will develop the system as a customized version of its Emissions and Allowance Tracking System, a software application for collecting, verifying, and managing emissions and tradable allowance data for state, regional, national, and international emissions trading programs. The software initially was developed under contract to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and has been customized as a Kyoto Protocol-compliant registry for New Zealand and Canada.

Founded in 1979, PQA is a privately held, interdisciplinary environmental consulting firm located in Charlottesville, Va.,