Some statistical claims made about the emissions of corporations appear in headlines:
"A small set of firms are responsible for a large share...
This can be the case since "responsible" could reflect not only the releases from facilities owned or operated by a company, but also the emissions produced by using the goods sold by that firm.
Clarifying the difference may explain why corporate emissions statistics can seem paradoxical, while emphasizing the value of industrial measurement.
Sources Of Direct Emissions From Industrial Facilities
The facilities and equipment of a company's own operations could release emissions, for example:
Boilers and other heat- or power-producing machinery or equipment,
Machines used in its manufacturing or refining processes,
Refineries,
Power plants,
Combustion sources,
On-site transportation or other equipment
These emissions would typically be classified as Scope 1.
At an industrial stack -- which can be an exhaust or chimney -- a monitoring team might gather information about what gases, liquids or particulates are emitted from the combustion process, plus any flow and temperature in the stream. The gases might include nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, oxygen -- or other gases depending upon what was burned.
The reason for taking a particular reading could reflect multiple factors, but the goal generally is to provide an indication of emissions. Teams might use this information to better understand the process and emission conditions, look at causes when there was an apparent change, or evaluate controls and pollution reduction.
Industrial facilities' emissions are typically included in a broader category called corporate scope emissions, and can be expressed in terms of total greenhouse gas emissions or, more specifically, the amount of CO2 equivalent emissions. As a reference, a typical gasoline-fueled car emits about 8,900 grams of CO2 during a single mile driven.
Emissions From Products Sold By Firms
However, when a company sells products that involve combustion, for those products the company should also consider the emissions resulting when customers use them. For instance, gasoline, diesel fuel, coal, or natural gas are each products that -- when burned by consumers or third-party entities -- produce emissions:
The company's emissions could reflect the releases that occur prior to delivery, such as during processing or transportation. But when gasoline is burned in an automobile, the emissions that result can also be considered part of that company's "value chain." Similarly, when the natural gas consumed at a power plant was produced by another company, those emissions add to that other company's inventory of emissions in its value chain. Emissions associated with consumer use of products by a company's customers are classified as Scope 3 emissions.
When a statistical claim attributes a percentage of global emissions to a company -- or to several companies -- this might refer to the sum of all emissions from operations at its facilities or sites, but those numbers are not necessarily the sum of its "own" emissions from its manufacturing, power generation, refining, or other facilities or buildings, or its third-party distribution or related emissions.
Clarifying The Meaning Of Corporate Emissions And Stack Information
Why Do They Matter? What Sources Of Information Could Help Address Some Confusions?
A corporate emissions inventory asks a different question than does an industrial stack monitoring campaign.
While the first might state, "What is the climate impact associated with this organization, including its processes and value chain?" the second provides an answer to a narrower question: "What is exiting that stack?" Both are valuable, but one should not substitute for the other. A wide-scope inventory might identify emissions for a certain type of transport or chemical, while stack readings give finer information in a specific context. One does not invalidate the other, but conflating the two can cause confusion.
Who Is Emitting? Customers, Corporations And The Industrial Infrastructure They Operate
A simplistic view of this issue would position this as a choice between "responsible" individuals and "responsible" large corporations. In practice, a company typically has only limited power to control multiple elements of demand, of production, of distribution, or of energy generation or transport of products, or related aspects. Instead, there can be a variety of interacting components influencing overall emissions for a particular good, service or industry, for instance:
Demand,
Industrial production,
The energy infrastructure and resources used,
The transport infrastructure and resources used,
Technological options or limitations,
Investment by the companies involved,
Regulatory pressures,
The economic costs or other factors affecting prices or availability.
One example of a change at a single component in a system might be a switch of demand for a particular high-emission product -- for that item, the change initially only influences production. But to the extent production cannot change immediately due to limitations due to infrastructure, transport or other factors, these factors or the decisions of multiple other participants will also be involved.
Understanding Emissions Needs A Broader View, In Addition To Reading A Single Stack
The large emissions figures mentioned in headline claims are typically calculated using estimates, production figures and emissions factors, and other variables.
While this approach can be valid and effective, it is fundamentally different from looking at a specific set of emissions data coming from a stack at a particular industrial operation.
The advantage of the latter approach is that it is more specific: for that facility and for that stack, the equipment involved could provide much better insight about what is going on and what changes may be occurring.
For instance, a particular industrial stack could have gas analyzers, particulate monitors, flow meters, temperature sensors and other instruments designed to collect information about the equipment or process, or the emissions released. When the data from those are collected -- individually or in combination -- and stored as a database over time, this allows for trend identification, evaluation of operating or emission conditions, or investigation of outliers. Other connected tools can reduce the need to access multiple files by moving the data into a dashboard or other repository.
Emissions and Stack offer technologies related to gas emission analyses, particulate or dust and stack flow and temperature monitoring.
The value of such detailed industrial reading and recording is twofold: it contributes to developing a broader view of emissions inventories for an organization or an industry, and it allows a better interpretation of a single large number.
Questions To Ask A Source Citing A Statistical Claim About Corporate Emissions
When looking a statement that indicates a company or organizations are responsible for some X percent of worldwide emissions, it helps to consider the following questions:
Do their calculations include all of the gases involved?
Does the claim include direct and indirect emissions?
Are the emissions connected to the operations of the facilities owned or operated by the companies accounted for?
Are sold products' use emissions included in the figure?
Were any particular scopes, such as a corporate scope of emissions, referenced when giving the figure?
Do the figures represent an average over time?
Were the figures measured, or are they estimated using production numbers and emission factors?
Are the figures compared using the same references?
Clarifying Corporate Emissions: A Needed Action
A company's emissions claim can help provide context and perspective to a complex issue.
But the information reflects not only the releases that occur at the facilities owned or operated by the company, but also those that can stem from using the products that are sold by that organization. Similarly, when industrial operations are monitored at a specific stack, the data can add insight into what that company's impact is in a specific context.
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