Lecture Notes: Understanding CO2 Emissions Scopes

Presented by: Melissa Raid, Chief Sustainability Officer at Sustain.Life

Introduction

• CO2 emissions identification crucial for business operations
• Focus on different scopes of emissions

Scope 1: Burn

• Direct emissions from fuel burned directly by the company
• Examples:
  • Gas for company cars
  • Heating oil
  • Fuel for equipment
• Criteria: Company pays the fuel bill and owns the asset

Scope 2: Buy

• Indirect emissions from purchased energy
• Examples:
  • Electricity
  • Steam
  • Heating
  • Cooling
• Generated off-site, consumed on-site, cannot be directly controlled by the company

Scope 3: Beyond

• Indirect emissions not covered in Scopes 1 and 2
• 15 categories
• Typically the largest source of emissions for companies without significant physical assets
• Most difficult to measure

Remembering the Scopes

• Three B's: Burn, Buy, Beyond
  • Scope 1: Burn
  • Scope 2: Buy
  • Scope 3: Beyond

Example: T-shirt Manufacturer

• Scope 1 & 2:
  • Energy use at owned factories
  • Diesel for equipment
  • Electricity
  • Heating oil
• Scope 3:
  • Upstream emissions: Energy to process raw materials, transit miles for delivery of raw materials
  • Downstream emissions: Emissions from decomposition of t-shirts in landfills

Conclusion

• Emissions accounting framework may seem overwhelming but becomes easier with familiarity
• Sustain.Life Emissions Management Platform to aid in calculation and identification of relevant sources
• Visit sustain.life for more information

Final Note

• Understanding and managing emissions is critical for sustainability