CEA Carbon Footprint & Emissions Tracking 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which GHG Protocol scope covers emissions from purchased electricity consumed by an organization?
- Scope 1
- Scope 2 (Correct answer)
- Scope 3
- Scope 4
Correct answer: Scope 2
Scope 2 covers indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heat, or cooling consumed by the reporting company.
Question 2: What is the standard unit used to express and compare greenhouse gas emissions across different gases?
- BTU equivalent
- Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) (Correct answer)
- Watt-hour equivalent
- Nitrogen oxide equivalent
Correct answer: Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e)
CO2 equivalent (CO2e) normalizes all greenhouse gases to a common unit based on their 100-year global warming potential (GWP).
Question 3: A manufacturing facility tracks direct emissions from its on-site natural gas boilers. Under the GHG Protocol, these are classified as:
- Scope 2 emissions
- Scope 3 upstream emissions
- Scope 1 emissions (Correct answer)
- Scope 3 downstream emissions
Correct answer: Scope 1 emissions
Scope 1 covers direct GHG emissions from sources owned or controlled by the organization, including combustion in owned boilers.
Question 4: Which metric is used to measure the 100-year climate impact of a greenhouse gas relative to CO2?
- Radiative forcing index
- Global Warming Potential (GWP) (Correct answer)
- Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP)
- Atmospheric Lifetime Factor
Correct answer: Global Warming Potential (GWP)
Global Warming Potential (GWP) compares the heat-trapping ability of a greenhouse gas over 100 years relative to CO2.
Question 5: Which of the following is a Scope 3 emission category under the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard?
- Natural gas combustion in owned furnaces
- Purchased electricity consumption
- Employee commuting (Correct answer)
- Fugitive refrigerant leaks from owned equipment
Correct answer: Employee commuting
Employee commuting is a Scope 3 upstream category because the emissions occur in assets not owned or controlled by the reporting company.
Question 6: An energy analyst wants to calculate the carbon footprint of electricity use. Which data source provides the appropriate emission factor for US grid electricity?
- ASHRAE 90.1 appendices
- EPA eGRID database (Correct answer)
- DOE Building Energy Data Book
- NIST Handbook 135
Correct answer: EPA eGRID database
EPA's eGRID (Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database) provides subregional emission factors for US grid electricity generation.
Question 7: What does the term 'organizational boundary' refer to in the context of GHG accounting?
- The geographic borders of a company's headquarters
- The definition of which entities and operations are included in an inventory (Correct answer)
- The legal jurisdiction under which emissions must be reported
- The maximum allowable emissions under a cap-and-trade program
Correct answer: The definition of which entities and operations are included in an inventory
Organizational boundary determines which operations and subsidiaries are included in a GHG inventory, typically set using the equity share or control approach.
CEA Carbon Footprint & Emissions Tracking 2
Which GHG Protocol scope covers emissions from purchased electricity consumed by an organization?