Friday, January 30, 2009

El Paso Natural Gas - Good Carbs with California

The California Climate Action Registry (CCAR) announced that it has approved and registered the total emissions of El Paso Corporation (NYSE: EP) for all applicable greenhouse gas (GHG) pollutants in the U.S., making it the first natural gas company to obtain a complete CCAR approved GHG emissions inventory. The recognition covers emissions reported for 2007.

El Paso has been a CCAR member since 2006. In 2007, El Paso became the first company to earn CCAR's distinction of Climate Action Leader(TM) for its California emissions and the first organization in CCAR's history that submitted a certified inventory without a single error.

"The certification of our total U.S. emissions is a major milestone for El Paso Corporation," said Doug Foshee, president and chief executive officer of El Paso Corporation. "It is the culmination of a rigorous, three-year emissions inventory program that highlights our continuing commitment to being the neighbor to have. We believe natural gas will play a critical role in the nation's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and El Paso will be at the forefront of the development of needed natural gas infrastructure and associated climate change policies."

"Once again, El Paso has demonstrated its national leadership on climate change policies and programs as it impacts natural gas. We applaud this achievement of reporting total U.S. emissions for all applicable emissions from El Paso's assets in the natural gas exploration, production, processing, transmission, and storage segments. El Paso is a pioneer in the area of carbon accounting for the natural gas industry and has served as a true and committed leader in addressing climate change," said Gary Gero, president of the California Climate Action Registry.

CCAR, a private nonprofit organization committed to solving climate change through emissions reporting and reduction, was originally created by the State of California in 2001 to protect and promote companies' and organizations' early actions to calculate, report and manage their GHG emissions. Emissions reports are certified by independent third-parties to ensure compliance with CCAR protocols and standardization across participants and sectors. Organizations that are willing to meet the accounting standards and third party certification requirements show their serious intent to address climate change. CCAR has been widely recognized as a gold standard for public reporting of GHGs.

El Paso's complete emissions report is available through CCAR's Web site at https://www.climateregistry.org/CARROT/public/reports.aspx

The California Climate Action Registry is a private nonprofit organization committed to solving climate change through emissions reporting and reduction. It serves as a voluntary greenhouse gas (GHG) registry for entity-wide emission inventories and also establishes protocols for GHG emission reduction (offset) projects through its Climate Action Reserve program. The protocols are created through a rigorous, transparent process and are widely regarded as among the highest quality standards for offset projects. The Climate Action Reserve also accredits and oversees independent verifiers and tracks the transactions of project offset inventories, adding confidence and credibility to the voluntary carbon market. The accuracy, transparency and integrity of all of the California Registry's standards have earned it the reputation as a respected and internationally recognized leader in climate change issues.

The California Climate Action Registry was originally formed by the State of California in 2001 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. For additional information, please visit www.climateregistry.org.

El Paso Corporation provides natural gas and related energy products in a safe, efficient, and dependable manner. El Paso owns North America's largest interstate natural gas pipeline system and one of North America's largest independent natural gas producers. For more information, visit www.elpaso.com.

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