GRI Data Collection & Measurement Techniques 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A company reports Scope 1 emissions using a default emission factor from a national inventory. A more precise site-specific factor is available. What should the reporter do?
- Always use the national default for comparability across industries
- Use the site-specific factor and disclose the source, as higher accuracy is preferred (Correct answer)
- Use whichever factor produces lower reported emissions
- Average the two factors to reduce reporting uncertainty
Correct answer: Use the site-specific factor and disclose the source, as higher accuracy is preferred
GRI and GHG Protocol guidance both favor higher-quality, site-specific emission factors when available, with source disclosure required for transparency.
Question 2: Under GRI 401, how should an organization measure employee turnover rate?
- Number of resignations divided by total headcount at year-end
- Number of employee departures divided by average employee count, expressed as a percentage (Correct answer)
- Ratio of new hires to total separations during the reporting period
- Number of involuntary terminations divided by total workforce
Correct answer: Number of employee departures divided by average employee count, expressed as a percentage
GRI 401 defines turnover rate as total departures (voluntary and involuntary) divided by average total employees, multiplied by 100 for a percentage.
Question 3: Which approach is considered best practice for collecting human rights data across global supply chains under GRI 412?
- Rely solely on third-party certification programs to attest to supplier compliance
- Conduct on-site human rights due diligence assessments at supplier facilities (Correct answer)
- Collect annual self-certification forms from all tier-1 suppliers
- Review country-level human rights indexes published by NGOs
Correct answer: Conduct on-site human rights due diligence assessments at supplier facilities
GRI 412 and UN Guiding Principles emphasize on-site due diligence as the most reliable method for identifying actual human rights impacts in operations and supply chains.
Question 4: When an organization restatements previously reported data, what does GRI require?
- File an amendment with the GRI database and issue a press release
- Disclose the reason for the restatement, the scope, and the effect on reported figures (Correct answer)
- Restate only figures that changed by more than 5% from the original
- Obtain third-party assurance before publishing restated figures
Correct answer: Disclose the reason for the restatement, the scope, and the effect on reported figures
GRI's principle of comparability requires organizations to disclose the nature, rationale, and impact of any restatements to allow users to interpret trends accurately.
Question 5: For reporting significant spills under GRI 306 (legacy) or environmental incidents, what minimum data should be collected per incident?
- Date, location, type and volume of substance spilled, and response actions taken (Correct answer)
- Financial cost of cleanup and insurance claim amount only
- Media coverage and regulatory fines issued
- Number of employees involved in the spill response
Correct answer: Date, location, type and volume of substance spilled, and response actions taken
GRI requires spill disclosures to include the volume spilled, substance type, location, and response actions to provide a complete picture of environmental impact.
Question 6: What is a 'sampling approach' in GRI data collection and when is it acceptable?
- Collecting data from a representative subset of operations when full coverage is impractical, with methodology disclosed (Correct answer)
- Randomly selecting which GRI Standards to report against each year
- Auditing only a sample of supplier invoices to estimate total spend
- Reporting only the best-performing facilities to showcase sustainability progress
Correct answer: Collecting data from a representative subset of operations when full coverage is impractical, with methodology disclosed
Sampling is acceptable under GRI when data collection across all operations is impractical, provided the sample is representative and the methodology is transparent.
Question 7: How does GRI define 'intensity ratio' for environmental metrics like energy or emissions?
- Total impact divided by a business activity metric (e.g., revenue, production units, floor area) (Correct answer)
- The ratio of renewable energy to total energy consumed
- Emissions reduction achieved per dollar invested in sustainability
- Year-over-year percentage change in absolute environmental data
Correct answer: Total impact divided by a business activity metric (e.g., revenue, production units, floor area)
An intensity ratio normalizes absolute environmental data against a business metric, enabling performance comparison across different scales of operation.
GRI Data Collection & Measurement Techniques 4
A company reports Scope 1 emissions using a default emission factor from a national inventory.
A more precise site-specific factor is available.
What should the reporter do?