Objective
In this step, you will identify all emission sources within your operational boundary. Emission sources are the specific processes, assets, or activities that generate greenhouse gas emissions. Defining these sources accurately is crucial for creating a comprehensive and reliable GHG Inventory.
Types of Emission Sources
Here are some examples of Emission Sources:
Stationary Combustion: Emissions from fixed equipment like boilers, furnaces, or generators that consume fossil fuels.
Mobile Combustion: Emissions from transportation, including company-owned vehicles, delivery trucks, and employee commutes (if applicable).
Process Emissions: Emissions resulting from physical or chemical processes, such as manufacturing operations.
Fugitive Emissions: Emissions that are unintentionally released, such as leaks from refrigerants or natural gas pipelines.
Electricity: Emissions from purchased Electricity from national power grid or private energy suppliers.
Business Travel: Emissions from air, land or sea transportation for employees travelling for business.
Employee Commute: Emissions from cars, taxis or public transportation that employees use to get to and from work.
Why This Step is Important
Accurately identifying emission sources is foundational for an effective GHG Inventory. It allows your organization to:
Target High-Emission Areas: Pinpoint major contributors to overall emissions for more focused mitigation efforts.
Comply with Regulations: Ensure comprehensive tracking to meet regulatory requirements and prevent penalties.
Drive Emission Reduction Strategies: Create targeted initiatives for reduction, focusing on specific activities or sources that contribute the most.
Practical Implementation with Carbon GPT
When using Carbon GPT to define your emission sources:
Create a Structured Inventory: Use Carbon GPT's inventory management features to create a hierarchical structure of emission sources organized by scope and category.
Utilize Templates: Take advantage of pre-defined templates for common emission sources in your industry to ensure you don't miss critical sources.
Document Metadata: For each emission source, record important details such as:
- Source description
- Location/facility
- Associated scope and category
- Responsible department
- Measurement methodology
Map to Organizational Structure: Link emission sources to specific departments, facilities, or business units to establish clear ownership and accountability.
Case Study: Manufacturing Company
A medium-sized manufacturing company identified the following emission sources during this step:
Scope 1 Sources:
- Natural gas boilers for heating (Stationary Combustion)
- Diesel generators for backup power (Stationary Combustion)
- Company delivery fleet (Mobile Combustion)
- Chemical process emissions from production line (Process Emissions)
- Refrigerant leakage from cooling systems (Fugitive Emissions)
Scope 2 Sources:
- Purchased electricity for manufacturing facility
- Purchased steam for production processes
Scope 3 Sources:
- Business air travel for sales team
- Employee commuting
- Upstream transportation of raw materials
- Waste disposal from manufacturing process
By clearly defining these sources, the company was able to create a targeted data collection plan and identify that their production line and purchased electricity were the largest contributors to their emissions.
Next Steps
Define Emission Sources for Each Scope Category: Now that you've established your operational boundaries, start identifying specific emission sources for each selected Scope category (Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3). This involves listing all activities, assets, or processes within each category that generate emissions, ensuring a thorough and structured approach.
Engage Relevant Departments: Collaborate with teams like facilities, logistics, and production to gather accurate data for each identified emission source. Their input will be crucial for ensuring all sources are properly accounted for.
Prepare for Data Collection: With your emission sources clearly defined, you're now ready to move to the next step: data collection. Having a comprehensive list of sources will make the data collection process more efficient and targeted.