CAP Emissions Reduction Strategies 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the EPA's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, which industrial sector is required to report emissions using the Tier 3 method for combustion sources?
- Facilities with annual emissions below 10,000 metric tons CO2e
- Large facilities where CO2 concentration is continuously monitored using CEMS (Correct answer)
- Small commercial buildings using natural gas for heating
- Agricultural operations using diesel fuel for irrigation
Correct answer: Large facilities where CO2 concentration is continuously monitored using CEMS
Tier 3 requires continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS) to directly measure CO2 concentration and flow rate, applying to large combustion facilities under EPA's GHGRP.
Question 2: A company switches its vehicle fleet from gasoline to compressed natural gas (CNG). Which Scope of emissions is primarily affected?
- Scope 1 only (Correct answer)
- Scope 2 only
- Scope 3 only
- Both Scope 1 and Scope 3
Correct answer: Scope 1 only
Fleet vehicles burning CNG on-site generate direct (Scope 1) combustion emissions, replacing gasoline-based Scope 1 emissions.
Question 3: Which abatement measure is most effective for reducing methane emissions from coal mine ventilation air (VAM)?
- Carbon capture and storage
- Thermal flow reversal reactors (TFRR) (Correct answer)
- Electrostatic precipitators
- Selective catalytic reduction (SCR)
Correct answer: Thermal flow reversal reactors (TFRR)
TFRRs oxidize very low-concentration methane in ventilation air by reversing flow direction to maintain combustion temperatures, making them the primary VAM mitigation technology.
Question 4: In life cycle assessment (LCA), which system boundary approach allocates upstream emissions from raw material extraction to the product being studied?
- Gate-to-gate
- Cradle-to-gate (Correct answer)
- Cradle-to-grave
- Grave-to-gate
Correct answer: Cradle-to-gate
Cradle-to-gate includes all emissions from raw material extraction through manufacturing but excludes use-phase and end-of-life stages.
Question 5: A steel manufacturer installs electric arc furnaces (EAF) powered by renewable energy instead of basic oxygen furnaces (BOF). Which primary emission benefit results?
- Elimination of Scope 3 upstream supply chain emissions
- Significant reduction of Scope 1 process CO2 from iron ore reduction (Correct answer)
- Complete elimination of all facility-level GHG emissions
- Reduction of fugitive SF6 emissions from smelting
Correct answer: Significant reduction of Scope 1 process CO2 from iron ore reduction
BOF uses coke to reduce iron ore, creating large Scope 1 CO2 process emissions, while EAF melts recycled scrap steel electrically, largely eliminating those direct process emissions.
Question 6: Which financial instrument specifically funds projects that generate verified carbon emission reductions and allows buyers to claim those reductions against their own targets?
- Green bonds
- Sustainability-linked loans
- Carbon offsets / carbon credits (Correct answer)
- Environmental impact bonds
Correct answer: Carbon offsets / carbon credits
Carbon offsets represent verified, quantified emission reductions from specific projects that purchasers can use to compensate for their own GHG emissions.
Question 7: A facility reduces its refrigerant HFC-134a leaks by implementing a leak detection and repair (LDAR) program. The GWP of HFC-134a is 1,430. If leaks are reduced by 2 metric tons of HFC-134a, what is the CO2e reduction?
- 1,430 metric tons CO2e
- 2,860 metric tons CO2e (Correct answer)
- 715 metric tons CO2e
- 28,600 metric tons CO2e
Correct answer: 2,860 metric tons CO2e
CO2e = mass × GWP = 2 metric tons × 1,430 = 2,860 metric tons CO2e.
CAP Emissions Reduction Strategies 2
Under the EPA's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, which industrial sector is required to report emissions using the Tier 3 method for combustion sources?