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MassDEP Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting Program

Facility reporting of greenhouse gas emissions provides data that helps Massachusetts develop emission reduction targets and plans, and measure progress toward its Climate Action goals.

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Overview & Applicability

The Massachusetts Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), which became law in 2008, required the Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) to promulgate mandatory greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting regulations.

MassDEP responded by issuing 310 CMR 7.71, which identifies the facilities that need to report, establishes methodologies for calculating and verifying emissions, and allows voluntary reporting by facilities for which it is not mandatory.

Required to Report:
  • All facilities regulated under Title V of the federal Clean Air Act and Appendix C of 310 CMR 7.00: Air Pollution Control
  • Facilities emitting more than 5,000 short tons per year of Carbon Dioxide Equivalent (CO2e)
Reportable Emissions:
  • Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
  • Methane (CH4)
  • Nitrous oxide (N2O)
  • Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6)
  • Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
  • Perfluorcarbons (PFCs)

MassDEP also established special requirements for Retail Sellers of Electricity.

See Additional Resources below for related links and downloads, including a GHG Reporting Applicability Screening Tool spreadsheet that you can use to determine if your facility needs to report.

Additional Resources

Open file,  310 CMR 7.00: Air Pollution Control (See 7.71: Greenhouse Gas Reporting)
Open XLSX file, 51.83 KB,  Greenhouse Gas Reporting Applicability Screening Tool (English, XLSX 51.83 KB)

Facility Reporting

GHG reporting is combined with Source Registration on the eDEP Online Filing system and web forms are now available.

Follow the link in Key Actions below to learn more.

Key Actions

Source Registration & GHG Reporting 

Exemption Petitions

Any entity may petition the Department to be exempted from the requirement to report greenhouse gas emissions from a facility provided the following requirements are met:

  • The entity is not required to report greenhouse gas emissions from the facility pursuant to 310 CMR 7.71(3)(a)1. or 2.;
  • The entity is unlikely to be required to report greenhouse gas emissions from the facility pursuant to 310 CMR 7.71(3)(a)1. or 2. for any future year;
  • At least one greenhouse gas emission report documenting greenhouse gas emissions from the facility showing less than 5,000 short tons of greenhouse gases in carbon dioxide equivalents has been submitted pursuant to 310 CMR 7.71(4) and (5); and
  • The facility is in compliance for each required reporting year under 310 CMR 7.71(4)

The exemption petition must be submitted to the Department on the exemption form provided in Additional Resources below.

Additional Resources

Open PDF file, 732.52 KB,  Fillable Exemption Petition Form (English, PDF 732.52 KB)

Retail Seller of Electricity Reporting

A Retail Seller of Electricity is:

All retail sellers are required to annually report GHG emissions they release from generating the power they sell. There is also an optional report for those that choose to account for ownership and/or use of certain generation sources.

Each retail seller's GHG emissions are calculated by multiplying megawatt hours (MWh) supplied to customers in a particular year by GHG emission factors that MassDEP updates annually after issuing draft factors for public and stakeholder comment.

See Additional Resources below for a link to MassDEP calculations of emission factors.

Key Actions

Retail Seller of Electricity GHG Emissions Reporting 

Additional Resources

Open file,  GHG Reporting Program Data, Including MassDEP Calculations of Emission Factors

Annual GHG Emissions Data

Follow the link below for annual summaries of Massachusetts facility and Retail Seller of Electricity GHG emissions reporting.

Additional Resources

Open file,  Massachusetts Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reporting Program Data

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