22.

For the definition of the assigned category and the development of the assessment, the responses to the following information requests were taken into account:

Undersecretariat of Environment

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hBTDUjuN5FfdxB1JTJc2S7FgIXkEe-ud/view?usp=drive_link

 

Waste sector:

 

To date, Argentina has identified several specific policies, measures and barriers in the National Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Plan concerning the production of energy from biogas generated at sanitary landfills.

 

First, this measure involves the installation of pilot plants to produce energy from biogas generated by the organic fraction of municipal solid waste discarded by residents at sanitary landfills, as well as the installation of plants to capture and recover the biogas generated at sanitary landfills or wastewater treatment plants.

 

Its objective is to demonstrate that plants and systems for generating and using biogas from organic municipal solid waste, including sanitary landfills and biodigesters, are technically, environmentally, institutionally, economically and financially sustainable. This would allow them to be incorporated into Integrated Municipal Solid Waste Management projects and properly operated by municipalities.

As of 2023, 10 pilot biogas energy plants were in operation, and a roadmap had been developed to continue implementing projects at the 55 sanitary landfills identified. By 2027, the target is to have 6 sanitary landfills in operation under the GIRSU project.

Biogas Programme: UNDP ARG/16/G23

The Biogas Programme is itself a policy implementation instrument, as it seeks not only to generate impacts through direct investment but also to develop replicable models. It includes funding streams for pilot plants, the incorporation of biogas systems into municipal solid waste treatment plants, and the preparation of studies.

 

Regarding the effectiveness and monitoring of this programme, the following audit report by the Office of the Auditor General of Argentina is recommended: “PROMOTION OF BIOGAS GENERATION FROM MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE (GEF-UNDP ARG 16/G23)”:

 

Office of the Auditor General of Argentina. (2024). Environmental Management Report: Promotion of Biogas Generation from Municipal Solid Waste (GEF-UNDP ARG 16/G23) (Proceedings No. 128/2023). Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development. Approved by Resolution No. 78/2024.

 

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of the Argentine Republic. (2022). National Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Plan.

 

Energy sector

 

Regarding methane emissions generated by the energy sector, although a Minimum Environmental Standards Law on Methane Mitigation in the Energy Sector has not yet been approved at the national level, several southern provinces made progress between 2024 and 2025, either through methane-specific regulations, as in the case of Chubut, or through regulations on greenhouse gas emissions reporting more generally, as in Neuquén, Mendoza and Río Negro:

 

Chubut: Resolution No. 58/24 established objectives and guidelines for the detection, control, monitoring, quantification and reduction of methane emissions from hydrocarbon exploration, production and transport activities.

 

Mendoza: Decree No. 758/2025 established the Comprehensive Provincial Greenhouse Gas Emissions Programme under Provincial Law No. 9,585 on climate change. The Provincial Greenhouse Gas Emissions Registry was created through Resolution No. 1/2025.

 

Neuquén: Through Resolution No. 285/2025, published in the Official Gazette of Neuquén on 1 April 2025, the Secretariat of Environment of the Province of Neuquén created the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Monitoring and Mitigation Programme for the Hydrocarbon Sector.

 

Río Negro: Resolution No. 535/2023 of the Secretariat of Environment and Climate Change approved the Provincial Climate Change Response Plan 2022–2030. Law No. 5,733 of 19 July 2024 applies to oil companies extending their concessions in the province. It requires a commitment to plan medium-term upgrades to facilities, progressively implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and incorporate carbon capture, utilisation and storage technologies.

 

At the national level, Secretariat of Energy Resolution No. 970/23, issued in November 2023, created the “National Programme for the Measurement and Reduction of Fugitive Emissions from Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production Activities”. It has not yet been regulated.

 

FIRST ANALYSIS OF THIS OBJECTIVE CONDUCTED IN AUGUST 2025

 

Category

Early progress

 

DETAIL

Although this objective forms part of a global commitment, it does not establish a specific allocation among countries or quantified individual commitments for Argentina. Its achievement depends on coordinated national efforts that take into account each country’s capacities, challenges and circumstances.

 

In response to the information requests, the Undersecretariat of Environment stated that, under the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, Argentina is expected to face greater constraints on emissions growth rather than achieve absolute reductions.

 

The research conducted indicates that several specific actions are under way. In the waste sector, 10 pilot biogas energy plants have been operating since 2023, and a roadmap has been developed to continue implementing projects at the 55 sanitary landfills identified. The UNDP ARG/16/G23 Programme, audited by the Office of the Auditor General of Argentina, is also noteworthy. In the energy sector, subnational regulatory progress has been made in Chubut, Neuquén, Mendoza and Río Negro regarding methane monitoring and mitigation in hydrocarbon activities. At the national level, the “National Programme for the Measurement and Reduction of Fugitive Emissions from Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production Activities” was created through Secretariat of Energy Resolution No. 970/23, issued in November 2023, but has not yet been regulated.